


Children of the Wild Ones

by MickeyRos



Series: Blood Mates [1]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Blood Bond, F/M, Gen, Pack Building, Pack Dynamics, Werewolf Mates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-04
Updated: 2014-02-26
Packaged: 2017-12-13 23:09:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 72,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/829908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MickeyRos/pseuds/MickeyRos
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She thought that time and distance could kill any bond. But, when an Alpha's involved some bonds can't be severed.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

# 

Prologue 

## 

Past Undone

Laura Hale was stuffing clothes in a duffle bag when she heard the apartment door open.

“Laura,” her baby brother called out. She took a deep breath as she considered how she wanted this to go. It would be a hard sell but at this point she had no choice. 

“Hey, I got your call.” Derek said as he appeared in her doorway. “What’s up?” He took in the mess of clothes all over her bed, in what was a normally an orderly room. “You going somewhere?” He asked, his thick brows arching up.

“Yes, I am,” she replied sardonically. “What was your first clue, genesis?” 

“Cute, you called _me_ remember. Going tell me where you’re going or am I going to have to guess?”

“Would it be cruel of me to say guess?” Laura asked with a bemused smile.

“I have a shift in a few minutes.” 

“Which is so not my problem since I called _three_ hours ago.” Laura narrowed her eyes at Derek. “Where have _you_ been baby brother? Or perhaps a better question would be or who were you with?”

Derek rolled his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest as he leaned back against the doorjab. “None of your business and don’t change the subject. Where are you going?” He asked his tone serious.

Laura zipped up her bag and stood up, placing her hand on her hips with a sigh as she mentally prepared herself for the discussion. “I’m going home to Beacon Hills.”

“What?” Derek stood up dropping his posture against the door. “Why?”

“Because it’s time, Derek. We have unfinished business there, we need to know what happened.”

“We _know_ what happened. Our family was burned alive and the only reason we didn’t suffer the same fate was because we were away at school. Case closed, there’s nothing left to know.” Derek argued as he had every time this discussion came up between them.

Laura dropped her hand from her hip. “But, there is Derek, we need to know who started the fire and who destroyed our family, we need this.” She noted of change of scent coming from her brother and was taken back to that day six years ago when the connection to their family members had been severed. She remembered driving to the high school to pick-up Derek and how they had raced back to their house to see it burning. “ _I_ need this. Look, Derek I know it’s not what you want but it’s time. We can track whoever did this. They’ve gotten away from us for far too long, it’s time for retribution and I would like it if you would go back with me.”

“No, I won’t go back.” Derek dropped his gaze away from hers as he answered quietly. “I can’t.”

“Derek-“

“I said no,” Derek replied with more force than necessary.

Laura arched a fine brow at him. “As your Alpha, I could force you to come with me.”

“And as your brother, I know you won’t.” They stared at each other, neither Hale backing down. Although, she’d been his Alpha for six years, she rarely ever had the need to use her pull on him to get him to bend to her will. In fact, she’d only done it once four years ago.

Laura snorted as she rolled her eyes. “Fine, I won’t force you to come but I need a favor from you.”

“Watch the bar and stay out of trouble,” Derek mocked.

“Okay three favors, mine the bar, stay out of trouble, and let me borrow your car.”

“Did I hear correctly, you want to borrow my car? What’s wrong with your car?”

“Nothing. But, I want to be inconspicuous when I drive back into town. And there’s nothing that says here I am notice me, like my hotass Camaro.”

“Does this mean I get the Camaro?” Derek asked with a gleeful smile mindful of the fact that his sister rarely let him touch let alone borrow her car.

Laura savored the smile on her brother’s face for they were so very rare. And when he gifted you with it, it was special. “Yes, you can have my Camaro.” She pulled her keys out of her pocket and walked over to hand them to Derek holding them out of his reach. “Derek, you get one scratch on my car and I will have your ass working free for a month.” She dangled the keys in the air.

“I got it, and the same goes for you with my truck.” He attempted to take her keys, only to Laura pull them out of his reach yet again.

“And no tickets.”

Derek rolled his eyes and grabbed the keys, “that happened once and I paid the ticket.”

Laura tsked, “So not the point,” but swapped keys with him. “I’ll call you when I get there.”

“Laura, I’m not a child, you don’t have to check up on me.”

She snorted as she turned back to grab the duffle off the bed. “Yeah, well don’t forget to drop off the deposit on Tuesday.”

“Seriously, that happened once I was on a deadline,” Derek protested as he started back down the hallway with Laura following him.

“And I’m never going to let you forget it.” She dropped the bag to floor and pulled on her black leather jacket. I’ll call when I get there.” She turned and pulled Derek into a hug. “Love you baby brother,” she said inhaling her brother’s scent. This was her pack, her family. This was why she had to know what happened.

“Love you too, short stuff.” Derek replied as softly as kissed her hair and released her.

*

_Beacon Crossing Home – Adult Rehabilitation Center_

Laura had driven all day and managed to what make it to the Rehabilitation Center just before visitor hours were over. 

The instant she crept to the doorway of his room she felt his grief slip over her like a two-ton weight. Werewolves had natural healing abilities ingrained in their DNA but it required a certain level of consciousness to heal the most serious of injuries. Her uncle had been in a catatonic state since the fire so the healing never took. Not even to the most basic injury to the skin on his half of his face had healed. 

Laura released a deep breath and walked over to his bed taking a seat in the vacant chair. “Hi Uncle Peter,” she said softly as she stared at his prone body. She had a hard time believing that the man on the bed was the same person who taught her how to control her wolf. Every time, she came to see him she instantly regressed into the ten-year old pup who idolized her uncle. 

“Excuse me, Miss but visiting hours are over,” a red-head nurse said from the doorway. “Mr. Hale needs his rest.”

“Of course,” Laura nodded. “Could I have a minute, please? To say goodbye.”

The nurse acquiesced. “One minute then you’ll have to leave.” 

“Okay,” Laura waited for the nurse to leave before she rose from the chair. She took her uncle’s hand and leaned down by his ear. “I know you can hear me Uncle. So I want you to know that I have forgotten what you taught me. I came home to find out who killed our family and I won’t leave until I do. I have a name, a place to start and I promise to make them pay.” With one last squeeze, she released Peter’s hand and rose to leave the room. 

A moment later, the nurse re-entered the room and shut the door.

Peter Hale’s once blank gaze focused on the nurse. “Follow her, I want to know every move she makes.”

“Of course, Peter I’ll do anything for you.”

“Good, now leave me, I need my rest.” Peter looked away from the nurse and closed his eyes. 

*

Laura waited in the dark, when she saw a young boy climb into a Jeep before she slid out Derek’s truck. She walked into the Animal Clinic quietly.

“We’re closed,” the vet said as he walked into the front of the clinic to see Laura Hale standing at the door. “Laura, it’s been a long time. I’ve been expecting you.”

“Have you really? I hadn’t been planning on coming here at all.” Laura offered as she walked toward the main desk.

“Well, you’ve been here for a week; I figured it was only a matter of time before you came to see me.” Deaton slid his hands into his white lab coat.

“Then, you know why I’m here?”

“I can guess, but, I don’t know if I can help you. Come into my office, we can continue this conversation in back.” He gestured for her to follow him. 

Laura followed Deaton back to his office. “Look, I’m not asking you to betray any code that you follow. Even though that code was violated six years ago when my family was burned alive and the hunters in this town buried it like I had to bury my family.”

“And as I told you then Laura, vengeance will not bring them back.” Deaton said as he settled into the chair behind his desk.

“You were right, but, I didn’t come here for that. I’ve been contacted again.”

Deaton leaned forward immediately concerned. “When?”

Laura shrugged, “It’s been a while but I know a warning when I see one. I need a pack, a strong one. That’s why I’m here; I need to know about the bond.”

“Can he sense it?”

“I don’t know but I can. His scent was altered and it’s still changing. But, Derek is also different.”

“We both knew that separating them was risk.”

“I know that,” Laura stressed her green eyes flaring slightly. “I can’t lose Derek, he’s the only one left … my family … I-I need him. So tell me what I can do to re-solidify the bond.”

“Understand this Laura, once a bond is healed and it can only be broken in death.” Deaton warned.

Laura gave a tight nod. “I understand. But, it’s the right thing to do. I will do whatever it takes to protect him including this. And if you were so concerned about this bond then you shouldn’t have exposed her to him, knowing what could happen.”

“And as I told you before, I had no idea this could happen. It’s rare for most packs and nearly unheard of with Betas.”

“Well, I guess it was lucky that it happened for him. You do your part and I will do mine to get Derek here. If you’re right the bond will settle and Derek will be back to his old self.” Laura turned to leave.

“Are you certain he’ll come?” She paused in the doorway. “I thought you said that he told you he would never step foot in this town again.”

“Derek and I have an agreement to check in with each other once a week if we are not in calling distance. When I don’t call, he’ll come looking for me.” Laura replied as Deaton rose to follow her out.

“I’ll put in the call but it may take while. What are you going to do till he gets here?” 

“What I do best,” Laura said with a flash of red eyes. “I’m going hunting.” Then she turned and left the Animal Clinic.

*

A few nights later, Laura awoke from a sound sleep by sound of her cell phone on the night stand beside her. She picked it up without seeing who it was.

“Hello,” Laura grumbled with sleep in her voice.

“Ms. Hale, this is your Uncle Peter’s nurse at Beacon Crossing Home, the rehabilitation center.”

“Yes, is my Uncle okay?” Laura asked as she shifted to sit up and turn on the light in her room. 

“I’m not sure Ms. Hale. Your Uncle seems to be missing—,”

“Missing? How can he be missing? My uncle has been in catatonic state for six years!”

“Yes, I understand that Ms. Hale. As I was about to tell you, we switched shifts this morning and when I arrived to check on Mr. Hale, I found his bed empty. I think that he may be awake.”

“Awake? I didn’t think that could happen.”

“You’d be surprised, Ms. Hale. Miracles happen all the time. In cases like these, the patients tend to go to places that hold strong memories for them. Do you have any idea where that might be for your uncle?”

Laura was giddy with relief, Peter was finally awake. “Yeah. I do actually.” Her mind racing thinking of the exact place her uncle would go.

“Good, could you tell me so I know where to send the ambulance—,”

“No, no,” Laura interrupted. Sending strangers to meet her Uncle who had just awakened could be a disaster especially if he had taken his true form again. Peter attacking strangers would be bad but he would never attack her, she was family. The only family he had left except for Derek. “I’ll get him and bring him back.”

“Are you sure Ms. Hale? The patient maybe disoriented and could become violent. And I would hate for you to get hurt. I could send someone to help you,” the nurse offered.

“No, that won’t be necessary. My uncle would never hurt me. ” Laura said as she swiftly got out of her bed and begin searching her clothes with her free hand.

“Okay, then Ms. Hale, we’ll be waiting for you when you get here.”

“Great, thanks again.” Laura said as she ended the call and tossed the cell onto the bed. She quickly pulled on her jeans and a t-shirt and grabbed her jacket. Within a few seconds, she was rushing out of the motel and into Derek’s truck. She drove back to Beacon Hills to her family home to find her Uncle never thinking that she would that she was headed to her own death.


	2. Chapter One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> // denotes a flashback scene //

_// **Four years ago …**_

_Genevieve Morrell sat in an office in the Bio-Psy Building of the University of Maryland. She glanced at her watch; it was just about time for her last client of the day. He had been referred to by her former mentor, Alan Deaton. Since leaving home nearly eight years before she hadn’t socialized with many pack members except for the rare visit from the occasional Omega or Lone Wolf in the area._

_After a while, she sighed, glancing at her watch once more, she noted that he was almost thirty minutes late. She had re-arranged her schedule to meet him at the last minute. This was a waste of her time since he obviously wasn’t coming. She shutdown her computer and turned off the lone lamp in the room._

_Genevieve grabbed her bag as she exited the office, pausing briefly to lock the door behind her. Then, she saw him walking toward her. At first glance, he looked like one of the students from one of her undergrad sessions. But, as he came closer she knew he wasn’t, this was her new patient, a Beta. She waited until he was less than a foot away from her. “You’re late.”_

_“Sorry?” He offered quietly without a hint of remorse in his tone._

_Genevieve snorted softly turning to open her office door back up. “Well, come in let’s get started.” She gestured for him to follow her into the room. She moved to sit behind the desk, storing her bag in drawer before she turned to face the younger man slouching in the chair before her._

_“Normally, I interview my clients to determine if there are things that they have anxiety about so I can help them get it under control.” He merely raised his brows at her in expectation. She cleared her throat and continued, “Right, so we aren’t going to do that here given the unusual circumstances. Let’s just go with the basics. What’s your name and why are you here?”_

_He sat and stared at her for a few minutes without a word. “Look, I get that you don’t want to be here but I can’t help you if you won’t talk. More importantly, I don’t want to waste my time so you are either going to cooperate with me or not.”_

_“Derek,” he said solemnly. “My name is Derek and I don’t really know why I’m here.”_

_“Well Derek, my name is Genevieve. And maybe we can figure out together why you’re here and how I can help you.” //_

**

Two Weeks after Season One Finale

**

The corridors of Beacon Hills High were empty and silent as Derek Hale considered who his next choice for pack should be. He already had Jackson, who he made a mental note to check on. Scott had yet to agree to join him, but he figured it was only a matter of time. Since he already had two members of the lacrosse team a third would be appropriate.

He’d surveyed the team over the last couple of days. Some of them had the strength and agility that he needed for his pack. However, something had drawn him to Isaac Lahey; he recognized something in the boy that he had seen in himself years before. Isaac was quiet and unassuming. He kept his head down and stayed out of trouble. It would be a nice contrast to the general dickishness of Jackson.

He was pretty much content with that course when a scent obliterated all thought. It nearly crippled him as he reached for the wall breathing it in. His eyes flickered brightly with a green haze as he followed it down the hallway, pass the gym, and toward the main office. The room was open but the lights were off. He recalled seeing the principal and secretary leave the building an hour ago. He followed the scent down the small hallway until he came upon the guidance office. He should have left the building going far away the second the scent came to him. But, he didn’t … he couldn’t because he had to know if it was real.

Finally, he came to an office with the soft glow of light and an open doorway. He silently walked to the door and paused taking in the sight before him. She was there, alive and real, putting books up on a shelf. She was dressed simply in black jeans with a cream colored sweater draped around her slim figure, completely oblivious to his presence until the door closed with a quiet click. She turned swiftly at the click of the door book in hand.

“Jesus Christ!” the book slipped from her hand. “What are you doing here?” Genevieve Morrell asked leaning down to pick the book up off the floor her heart racing like a drum belying the calm tone she used.

“Funny,” Derek said as his brows rose in surprise. “I was going to ask you the same thing.” He maintained his position with his back against the door as he watched her calmly place the book on the shelf before turning back to him as he pinned her with his green gaze.

“I’m working,” she paused to lower the anxiousness in her voice. When she was finally calm, she tried again. “What are you doing here at the school?”

“I was feeling nostalgic and decided to tour,” Derek said with a lazy grin. “This being my old hunting grounds and all.”

“Somehow, I doubt that. What are you doing _here_? In my office?” 

“What do you think?” He bit back a quiet growl. “I scented you.”

Genevieve narrowed her eyes, “you _scented_ me?”

“Yes,” Derek said pushing off the door as he all but prowled toward her. “Your scent is very alluring.” He paused in front her; towering over her he audibly took a whiff of her hair. “It calls to me. Do you know what it says?” He whispered.

Genevieve tilted her head back to meet his eyes. “What?”

“Mine.” He growled, eyes flashing red.

“Stop it,” Genevieve snapped as she stepped away from him crossing her arms over her chest. “Cut the bullshit, that posturing may work with some people but not me. I grew up with a pack so cut it out. What are you doing here?”

Derek snorted and relaxed his stance to lean back against her desk. “Your scent is distinctive and I can’t imagine why you would pop here in Beacon Hills when you know what it could mean.”

“There was an open position for a guidance counselor and I took it. End of story, it might be an unfamiliar concept for you but I am here to do a job.” She said before turning to place the last book on the shelf. “No more no less.”

Derek smiled. “As you said to me, cut the bullshit. You know very well what showing up here means for both me and you.”

“It means nothing. It’s been three years the link, bond or whatever you want to call it is dead and buried.”

Derek inclined his head to the side. “Is it?” His gaze slowly slid over her. “No, I don’t think it is.”

“Our bond is dead.” Genevieve reiterated.

“I thought it was buried. Either way, whatever you want to call it, it’s not dead or buried. It’s hidden, just dormant,” Derek corrected. “And it will remain that way because I allow it.”

“Is that a threat?”

“No, it’s not a threat,” Derek started rising and walking forward, forcing her to move back until she was against the wall. 

He propped his hands up against the wall barricading her within his arms as he held her gaze. “I think of it more as a promise of things to come.” He leaned down, his lips barely a whisper from hers. “I’ll give you one week to decide. If you decide to leave this town and never come back, I’ll let the bond will fade away.”

“And if I stay?” She asked gaze shifted from his mesmerizing eyes to his lips. 

“If you stay …” he lips stretched up into a wolfish grin as he touched his forehead to hers, his eyes closed and nostrils slightly flaring. 

Genevieve moved her hands onto his chest intent on pushing him away. His eyes flashed open; he dropped his hands to capture her wrists and pulling her into his body. When her gaze shot back to his it was glowing red.

“You’re mine!” He growled before pressing his lips to hers, his elongated incisor cutting at her lip. 

Genevieve reacted violently and pushed him away. Causing him to fall back on her desk, she touched her lip to find that the cut had already been healed by Derek’s saliva. If he was surprised by her strength, he didn’t show it. “You shouldn’t have done that.”

“Take that as a warning of things to come if you stay. You have one week to go because if you stay I will seal that bond, Genevieve.” Derek added as he shifted up off her desk and moved to leave her office.

“I have to be willing Derek. You know I won’t let you force that bond on me.” Genevieve called out.

Derek paused and looked back. “I’m an Alpha now. The pull will be that much stronger and harder to resist. And it won’t be muted this time. You’ll feel the full effects and it will be so powerful that you won’t be able to resist. You won’t want to, you’ll want it sealed and you will come to me when it’s time.” He backed away and turned continuing on his way with a smile. Things were looking up for him.

As soon as Derek was gone, Genevieve released the breath that she’d been holding. She closed her eyes and tried to center herself, calming her fast beating heart. As she released another deep breath, she felt it snap within her and settle. It was the connection, the bond, between herself and Derek that she had thought was gone. “Shit,” she swore and then swore again and again. 

“God damnit,” she shrieked as she picked up a picture frame and threw against the wall, the frame shattered. The bond was reborn, in full force and there was nothing she could do but curse the day she had met Derek Hale.


	3. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She never expected the dreams to be so real.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: This story takes parallel to the events of season two, although some things may change for the most part, this story canon complainant. If events aren’t directly mentioned assume that they occurred as shown.

**One Week Later**

_She was running through the woods when she stumbled across the something on the ground._

_As she rose up onto her feet, she turned back to see what had tripped her and was struck still by the sight._

_It was a body, at least a portion of a body. The body half appeared to have been ripped savagely away, but even the fact that she was staring at a dismantled body isn’t what got her._

_It was Laura Hale._

_She touched her nose to the cheek of Laura’s dead body and then let out a howl of mourning._

Genevieve jerked awake, her chest heaving for breath, her hands shaking. She grabbed at the glass of water she’d left on her bedside table, knocking it down in her haste. She swore softly under her breath as she turned on the light and picked up the empty glass. She got out of bed on shakily legs and walked to her en-suite bathroom. 

She stood there staring at her reflection in the mirror, in the darkened room. Derek had given her a one week warning to leave and she’d stayed. One week … she’d been tormented by her dreams every night. Each night she was doing different things, sometimes she was hunting, others she was being hunted, tortured with electric wires in a basement and tonight she’d found Laura Hale’s dead body… as a wolf. 

She turned the water on and bent to run splash it on her face. Turning off the water, she reached for a towel of a rack and dried her face. With a sigh, she replaced the towel and left the bathroom to go back to bed and to try to get some sleep only to find Derek sitting on her bed leaning against the headboard in jeans, with a long-sleeved t-shirt and black boots.

“Jesus Christ! What the hell are you doing here? More importantly, how did you get in?”

Derek ignored her question as he took in her appearance, in a t-shirt that went mid-thigh and her wild tousled hair. “It’s been a week,” he said as he rose to his feet and stared at her from across the bed. “I warned you what would happen if you stayed.”

“I don’t scare easy, Derek,” Genevieve said and stood up straighter, meeting his gaze, while crossing her arms over her chest. “I’m not leaving.”

Derek smirked as he slowly stalked forward. “I didn’t ask you to leave; in fact I don’t want you to.” She backed away from him, as he got closer to her, until her back was against the wall. “But, the time for warnings is over, Genevieve.” 

Even then she held his gaze, almost jumping when she felt his knuckle graze her notable dark circles under her eyes.

“But, you knew that already. The dreams…that’s why you’re having trouble sleeping.”

Genevieve closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the wall. “There weren’t any dreams last time and these feel real.”

“Last time, I wasn’t an Alpha. And you’re right, they aren’t just dreams. They’re memories, _my memories.”_

Her eyes flashed open. “What does that mean exactly? Am I going to keep having these dreams indefinitely reliving your memories?”

“That depends on you. I can help you get rid of them.”

“How?” She asked cautiously.

“Touch.” 

“What! Why?”

“It’s the bond re-asserting itself; it feeds off of our contact. With no contact, it takes whatever links are available. When we are physically apart for more than twenty-four hours the dreams will come. And, the longer we’re apart the worst they’ll get.” He explained his light eyes intensely focused on her face. 

Genevieve glanced away considering her next option. The past week had been spent researching for anyway she could break this bond. And so far the search was rather fruitless, she was quickly running out of options and she knew it. She had one avenue left to try, but before she even went there she wanted, at least, one night of sleep. “I want the dreams gone,” she returned her gaze to his, holding out a hand for him to touch. “But, it doesn’t change my feelings about the bond, I don’t want it.”

Derek nodded as his palm met hers. The instant their hands touched there was a jolt, like a circuit of electricity running through them. 

Instantly, his wolf was at ease. He watched as Genevieve released the breath that she been holding and slouched back against the wall, he released her palm. “The bond will grow stronger every day and soon my touch won’t be enough. The bond will demand more from you…from us and you’ll want it. You’ll crave it, even. The sooner you accept this eventuality the easier everything will be for you, Genevieve. Don’t fight it.”

Genevieve pulled her hand back to her chest and held it there. “I can’t do that,” she responded and then looked up to hear her front door close. She was alone in her room once more as though he’d never been there. With a sigh she pushed off from the wall and crawled back into her bed, suddenly very tired again. She cut off the light and slid her arms around the silk pillow as she closed her eyes and lapsed into a peaceful sleep.

*

Across town, Derek walked back into his warehouse heading toward the empty train car that he was calling home these days as he contemplated his next step. The dreams were coming a lot faster than he expected and obviously the week without any contact had weakened Genevieve’s resolve somewhat. She might fight him but she needed him and now she knew it. It would only be a matter of time before the bond was sealed.

“Derek!” He turned as he heard the call of his beta. After hearing Isaac talk about his father’s mysterious death he pushed aside the bond to tackle the next problem.

*

The next morning Genevieve took great care to cover the dark circles around her eyes. Half a night of dreamless sleep unfortunately did little to improve the signs of a week with little sleep. She dressed in black pin stripe suit with a silk cream blouse and her favorite pair of black pumps. 

She had an errand to run before she was ready to face to masses at the school. She was finally going to see Deaton and confront him about luring her here to re-ignite her bond with Derek. It was early when she got to the clinic. The door was open so she just walked in, just as a young man came from the back. “Dr. Deaton won’t be taking any patients until 8:30 unless there’s an emergency.”

“It’s not a professional call, Dr. Deaton and I are old friends, Scott.” She replied with a quick smile. “Is he in?”

Scott furrowed his brow in surprise before he answered with a shake of his head. “He’s in back. I-how did you know my name?”

It occurred to Genevieve then that she’d seen this boy in her dreams the previous week, he was a new werewolf but not in Derek’s pack. “I recognized your picture from your record. I’m the new guidance counselor at the school.”

“Oh,”

“Scott, shouldn’t you be getting to school? You don’t want to be late.” Deaton inquired as he appeared from the doorway of his office.

Scott glanced back between the young woman and the vet. “I’m just waiting for my ride.”

“Of course,” Deaton replied before sparing a glance to Genevieve. “Let’s go into my office.”

Genevieve nodded with a smile at Scott she followed Deaton back into his office. He took a seat behind his desk while she stood just inside the room. “Did you do this to me deliberately?”

“Do what? I don’t know what you’re referring to Genevieve?”

“Bullshit!” She snapped. “I worked hard to shut that bond down. I moved to the West Coast to get rid of it and within a matter of days of being in this town, I see Derek and it’s back and stronger too.”

“What do you mean stronger?” Deaton perked up. “How so?”

“I’ve had dreams of horrible things for the last week.” She paused shaking her head. “They stopped last night when I saw Derek again.”

“Of course, the contact clause,” Deaton replied to himself. 

“So then you knew he was back and you deliberately lied to me to get me here,” she argued as she began to pace.

“I did not lie, when I informed you about the open position at the school, Derek hadn’t returned to town.”

“But, you knew he would, didn’t you?” Genevieve asked as she stopped to stare at Deaton, “you knew that if the bond still existed it could be re-ignited.” 

“I didn’t think the bond would survive the distance. Are you certain it’s active?” 

“Yes, I can feel it,” She replied softly as she stared at Deaton with worried eyes.

“Bonded mates are steeped in old pack rituals. They are very rare and specific to each pack but most of them require some sort of shared blood between the mates to be activated.” Deaton didn’t add that the implications for such a bond were unknown to him. “Has any blood been spilt?”

“Does a cut lip count?”

“It could. When the bond was activated the first time Derek was a Beta so any pull he had over it would have been minimal. Now, that he’s an Alpha it changes things greatly, he can influence it whatever way he chooses and it seems he wants to seal it.”

“Is there any way I can resist it? If I’m feeling the pull now after minimal contact what will happen in a week… two weeks… a month? I can’t live like this. I can’t do my job like this, it could affect everything.”

“There are ways to delay it, but if Derek wants the bond, as you and I suspect he does, he will do whatever he can to ensure that it will be solidified.” Deaton replied calmly. 

“What if I leave?” Genevieve questioned as her ran through all the possibilities wrapping her arms around her chest.

“If blood has been spilt, he can track you. Do you really think that he wouldn’t chase after you if you left? I may not know Derek well but I know Alphas and he’ll track you if you leave.”

Genevieve closed her eyes with a great sigh and rubbed her face with her hands. “Right, of course, I’m thinking like he’s just a pack member, not an Alpha.” She dropped her hands and gathered her composure as she pulling herself into her cool professional persona. “If I leave, he’d hunt me down in an instant. I’m not leaving; I came here for a reason and I intend to see it through.” She turned to leave his office.

“Genevieve, wait. There is one option you’re not considering.” Deaton offered as he stood to follow her.

“What?” She asked her hand on the doorknob.

“I don’t know all there is to know about bonds they are closely secrets among most packs. But, your mother would know more. She could tell you what you want to know.”

“Of course, she would,” she replied sardonically glancing over her shoulder at him. “I’d rather not open that door. Once she knows, you know what will happen.”

Deaton inclined his head in a nod as he slid from behind the desk. “I do, but I suspect it would be better if it came from you and not me.”

Genevieve nodded and pulled open the door to walk out. “I’ll consider it,” she called out.

“One more question, you said you’ve been having dreams. Are they just dreams?”

“No, why?”

“You said that you’ve been having them since you first saw him last week?”

“Yes. Does that mean something?”

“It means the bond was never shut down, it was dormant because you wouldn’t let it go—,”

“No. You’re wrong.” Genevieve denied. 

“You initiated a blood bond and Derek accepted it. If time and distance couldn’t kill it then you’re holding onto to it. Some you didn’t let and that’s why it still exists.” 

Genevieve slammed her hand down on the front desk. “Then, I’ll find a way to destroy that link.”

“You can’t and you know it. There is only one outcome to this and you need to accept it Genevieve.” Deaton warned quietly as he watched her leave his office.

“I’ll do what I have to do and you do what you think is best, Alan.” Genevieve replied as stormed out of the clinic paying no attention to Scott and Stiles standing on the side.

“Dude, blood bond?! That’s like a thrall, right? With vampires?” Stiles asked. 

“I don’t know but we should go before we’re late for practice.” Scott added as he grabbed his bag and heading out of clinic pulling Stiles behind him. 

As they got into the Jeep, Stiles thought more on the new counselor, “And why would she have one with Derek of all people? Do you think this means she used to know Derek? 

As Stiles started the car, Scott wondered out loud if he should talk to Derek about what he heard.

Stiles snorted. “Ch-Yeah, ‘cause Derek is so forthcoming with information especially about himself.”

“Maybe I’ll just ask Allison if she’s ever heard anything about a blood bond.”

Stiles rolled his eyes. “Sure you will, Buddy?” He said, smacking Scott on the shoulder. “Right after a hot session of horizontal bonding which you’ll lose all three brain cells and forget all about asking about the blood bond.” Stiles mumbled under his breath.

“Stiles?”

“You know, I can hear you right.”

“Right, I forgot about that about.” Stiles said with a nod as he made a mental note to keep his thoughts to himself next time. It was much easier.

*

Later that night ….

Derek walked into his warehouse with Isaac trailing behind him. “So you’ll need to stay out of sight until we can take care of this, okay?” He asked as he dropped his leather jacket on an old desk hidden on his old train car.

“Okay,” Isaac replied quietly as he fidgeted with the sleeves of his shirt afraid to look up and see the disappointment in Derek’s eyes. He knew that Derek had to be regretting offering him the bite because he wasn’t strong like Scott. “Thanks for getting me out.”

“Isaac,” Derek called. “Isaac,” he repeated this time using his pull as Alpha to get the teenager to look up at him. He waited until the Beta met his eyes. “You’re pack now, as your Alpha it’s my responsibility to protect you.”

“What about the cops? They’re going to be looking for me.”

“We’ll figure something out,” he stepped toward the Beta and watched as Isaac held his breath as his hand came down on Isaac’s shoulder. “But not tonight. Tonight, we’ll rest.” He gestured toward the other compartment and watched as his Beta shuffled to the other side and sat down. He turned away then to let Isaac rest. They’d done a lot tonight and had a lot to do the following day. First, he’d gather his pack and then he’d get Genevieve.


	4. Chapter Three

**

Chapter Three

**

After another round of restless dreams of Derek’s memories and experiences Genevieve cracked. The very next morning, she made the call to her mother who answered without fail on the first ring.

“Genevieve! My love, how are you?”

“I’m good, Mom.”

“Are you? You sound stressed. Have you been getting enough rest?”

Genevieve swallowed her bemusement that her mother could read her so well, even miles away with just her voice as a cue, and she knew something was troubling her daughter. “How can you tell?”

“Intuition and you never call me this early in the morning. You’ve never been a morning person, Genevieve. So tell me, what has happened.”

“It’s nothing for you to worry about,” Genevieve hedged. “I’ve been doing some research, and I—” she paused to search for the right words. “I had some questions. Alan reminded me that I have one of the best resources for pack knowledge in my grasp.”

“You’re laying it on a bit thick, my love, but I’ll play. What do you want to know?”

“Pack rituals, specifically blood bonds, are they absolute?”

“Pack rituals are grounded in old magic, they are strong and absolute. And a blood bond is the purest form of old magic imaginable bounded by blood. It’s a very old custom only used by oldest packs to join together, like a marriage or a hand fastening. It’s a traditional that has lost favor in recent years because most packs are made not born these days so the exchange of blood is something they aren’t comfortable with. But, you know all this Genevieve so why don’t you ask what you really want to know.”

“If a bond was initiated with the first passing of blood but nothing more, could it be broken?”

“It depends.”

“On what?” 

“On the strength of the wolf that initiated the bond and if it was accepted.”

“But, what if they accepted it but the pair decided to separate… to possibly break it, would it fade away with time?”

“Genevieve, is there something you need to tell me?” Her mother asked with a grave tone as she realized what was really being asked.

“Mom, could you please just answer the question? I’ll explain later, I promise.” Genevieve requested as the fear of knowing that the bond would not break cloaked her thoughts.

“If the bond remained over time it means that _you_ never let it go. It will sit dormant until the pair is reunited and then it’s as if no time has changed with the first exchange of blood.”

“The first exchange of blood,” Genevieve repeated softly.

“Yes, to re-engage or activate the bond, the blood of one must be ingested by the other. Once that happens, you’ll start to feel the pull of the bond. Which leads to the most important part the bite by the Alpha of the pack; it’s a sign of acceptance. I’m told that once blood has been shared by both parties that the union is nearly indestructible. Only in death will the bond break.”

Genevieve slid down into the bed in resignation. “So that’s it, I can’t break it or reject it.”

“Tell me Genevieve,” her mother appealed quietly on the phone. 

“I’m in Beacon Hills and I saw Derek.” 

“Oh sweetheart,” her mother started.

“Please don’t say I told you so. You tried to warn me to get me to stay away from here and I wouldn’t listen. At least, now I know why I couldn’t say no. It wouldn’t let me.”

“I would never say that to you. Come home, I’ll have the elders find something, anything to help you.” Her mother offered.

“No. This is something I need to handle on my own. But, if I need you, I’ll call you, I promise. Love you, Mom.”

“And I you, love.” Genevieve hung up the phone digesting the knowledge that her blood bond with Derek was inevitable. From the minute she’d agreed to come to Beacon Hills the path had been set-up reignite her bond with Derek and instead of exhausting herself trying to fight it, she needed to accept it.

*

Allison Argent walked beside her grandfather as he got out of his car. Today was his first official day as principal at Beacon Hills High and he thought it would be a good idea for them to spend some time Grandfather/Granddaughter time together. Some part of her did not relish giving up her early morning make-out session with Scott, the other part of her was curious about her Grandfather and wanted to spend time with him, however awkward it was.

“Gerard, do you know anything about the new guidance counselor?” She asked as they walked into the main office together. 

“No, I haven’t met her yet.” Gerard answered as he glanced down at Allison. “Why so curious?”

Happy that she wouldn’t have to lie this time, Allison pushed her hair behind her ears and came with a ready reply. “Um, Lydia’s returning to school today and she has to meet with her. She asked me what she was like and I didn’t know, so I thought being the principal you might.” She finished with a slight smile.

“Ahh, well there’s no time like the present.” He gestured for her to follow him as he walked the short distance to the guidance office. “Let’s go introduce ourselves.” He knocked on the door before entering. “Pardon me, Ms. Morrell, is it?” 

Genevieve glanced up surprised to see the new principal and his granddaughter in her doorway. She smiled, with her brows rose in question as she stood up. “Yes, Mr. Argent. What can I do for you?”

“I see you already know who I am. I just wanted to introduce myself, I’m Gerard Argent.” He gestured with a hand and Allison stepped forward. “And this is my granddaughter, Allison.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you both,” Genevieve held her surprise that the young girl she’d seen in Derek’s memories was the daughter of hunters. This town kept getting stranger and stranger. “Argent it means silver, correct?”

“Yes, you know your French?” Gerard asked as Allison stared up at her grandfather in surprise.

“Yes, I studied the romantic languages as a bit of a hobby in undergrad.”

Gerard smiled. “Yes, I imagine you did. Give Deaton my regards when you see him.”

“Of course.”

Gerard glanced down at Allison, “Why don’t you take off sweetheart? We don’t want to take anymore of Ms. Morrell’s valuable time.”

Allison gave a quick nod to her grandfather and a small smile to Ms. Morrell. “Um, okay, it was nice to meet you, Ms. Morrell.”

Genevieve stood waiting for Gerard to take his leave but he merely stood in her doorway waiting for his granddaughter to get out of earshot. “Mr. Argent, is there something I can help you with?” Instead of answering her, he walked into her office and shut her door moving to stand behind the lone chair in her front of her desk.

“I understand that Lydia Martin is coming to speak with you.”

“Yes, her parents asked her to come see me. Is that a problem?”

“No, not at all we care about the wellbeing of all of our students. But, in light of her special situation, I liked a copy of your report after the meeting with her on my desk by the end of the school day.”

Genevieve was taken back. “Mr. Argent, as I am sure you are aware, anything a student confides in me is confidential unless—,”

“Unless they become a danger to themselves or others. Yes, I am well aware of regulations.”

“Then, you understand the position that you are putting me in.”

“What I understand, Ms. Morrell is that you are required to report any instances where a student might in danger be it from themselves or from others. Now, given the incident that led that poor girl into the hospital, I think we need to pay special attention to Ms. Martin. If that girl gives any hint of what’s going on with her, I want to know it. Deaton may choose to turn his back on us, but you Ms. Morrell, you work for me. So I’ll expect that report on my desk by close of business,” he turned and walked to the door. Pausing after he opened it to glance back at her. “Have a nice day, Ms. Morrell.” Without another glance, he left her office without another word.

“We’ll see, Mr. Argent. We’ll see.”

*

After eating a rather pitiful salad for dinner, Genevieve settled back in her living room with another bottle of her favorite wine. She didn’t even bother with a glass, this time drinking straight from the bottle, as she stared into the fire. She had been there since arriving home after taking a shower and changed into the more comfortable leggings and tank top that she preferred on days such as this.

What a day. The start of her less than spectacular day began with the depressing phone call with her mother and was soured even more by meeting the famed Gerard Argent and Lydia Martin. It was one bad thing from the next. The only highlight was dropping off the report of her meeting with Lydia that gave Gerard absolutely nothing. 

She’d also left Deaton a rather terse message for not warning her about Gerard Argent. Given the man’s natural hatred of anything supernatural and his family’s relationship with Hales, it would have been rather prudent that she’d have been warned about him. He was dangerous both to her and Lydia. She would give him nothing even if she managed to get Lydia to be open up with her. She just hoped she wasn’t too late to help her.

Her doorbell rang, probably a few times before it finally dawned on her what it was, through her trance of staring into the fire. She rose, placing the bottle on the table before she moved down the hall to answer her door. She didn’t even bother to check the side window or peephole before opening it. 

“Alan, what are you doing here?”

“There have been some new developments that I thought I should warn you about. May I come in?”

“Sure,” she pushed back and held the door open for him to walk in. He followed her back to her living room where she picked up her bottle and took another drink. “I’d ask if you want some but I’m not in a real charitable mood right now. But, please do sit and share these oh so important developments with me.”  
She plopped down on her sofa in front of the fireplace and waited for him to speak.

“I spoke to your mother, how many drinks have you had?”

“Oh did you.” She her tone dry as she took another sip. “Let’s see I had a glass of vodka to toast to my miserable day. Then, I had a bottle of wine with dinner which was great and now I’m having another bottle to celebrate.”

“You shouldn’t be drinking Genevieve—,” Deaton started.

“Oh spare me the lecture. I’m an adult and if I want to have a drink, or three or four that’s what I’ll do. I’m in the privacy of my home and I’m more than entitled after the day I’ve had. Besides, it’ll take more than a bottle or two of wine to get me drunk. Why didn’t you warn me that the Argents were in town?”

“Chris Argent hasn’t been a problem so I didn’t see the need to warn you of his presence. But, with Kate’s death it’s only natural that Gerard would arrive to bury his daughter.” Deaton offered without any recriminations.

Genevieve placed the bottle on the table and shifted to pull the band around her hair releasing it from the low bun she’d twisted it in. “You know, Alan I am beginning to tire of all the things you simply _forgot_ or didn’t think important enough to tell me about before I came here. Gerard Argent is dangerous, untrustworthy and a complete loose cannon.”

Deaton nodded with a sigh and sat down on the opposite side of the sofa from her. “You’re not wrong about your estimation of Gerard. I’m watching him. I got your message you need to be careful around him, he can’t learn anything about what’s going on with Lydia.”

Shaking her head until her hair was out of her eyes, she met his gaze. “And he won’t not from me. But, I assume that’s not why you’re here.”

“No, I didn’t. I thought you should know,” he paused. “Derek has a full pack now.”

Genevieve said nothing for a moment but blindly reached for her bottle and took another long drink. “Well, he’s certainly is moving fast. How did he manage to get one so soon?”

“According to Scott, he recruited from the high school.”

“Of course, he did. Let me guess they’re all loners with few or no friends.” Genevieve suggested. “Kids that if they didn’t show up to school one day, no one would notice or care.”

“I don’t know,” Deaton said surprised that Genevieve was taken everything rather well. It was a change from the young woman who charged into his office the previous week.

“Oh I know, I’ve been in his headspace before and if I know anything about him I know that Derek has a type. He’s going for the kids that no one cares about because they’re vulnerable and he can give them something that they’ve never had before.”

“What?”

“A place to belong, a chance to reshape themselves into something better, and more powerful – pick your cliché and that would be it in a nutshell. What teenager would turn that down?”

“You’re taking this rather well, Genevieve?” Deaton said as he rose to his feet. “I’m glad.”

Genevieve placed the now empty bottle of wine on the table, “Well, you can’t fight the inevitable. Derek would have completed his pack sooner or later it was just a matter of time. And I may have lied early. I’m a _little_ drunk so I think this is a good time to forestall any further conversation before it becomes more apparent. I’ll see you out Alan.”

She rose to follow Deaton to the door. “G’nite.”

“Good night Genevieve.” Deaton said as he closed the door behind him. 

Genevieve locked the door and went to pick up the empty bottle of wine taking it to the kitchen. She rinsed out the bottle; shaking the excess water, she placed it in her recycle bin beside her trash can. There was a knock at her front door. She paused, unsure if she was simply hearing things until she heard the sound again. This time however, she felt a tenuous pull at chest and knew it was Derek. 

She considered not answering the door, but pushed the thought out of her head, she was not a coward. She would face what was coming head on, as was her way. Wiping her damp hands on her leggings walked to the door. Taking a small breath before opening it, “Derek, what can I do for you?”

“I think you know why I’m here.”

“I do. I’m just surprised that you came through the front door. I wasn’t aware you knew where it was.” She turned and walked away leaving the door open for him to follow. He entered the house, locked the door and followed her path. Whereas, she stopped and stood waiting, he walked down the hall to her living room as if he’d done it many times before. She watched him sniff the air and then place his eyes on her in question.

“There was someone else here…The vet?” 

“Yes, Deaton was here. We talked,” Genevieve may not like the fact that bond bounded her to Derek but she was smart enough to know that poking a beast with a stick would only amount to trouble. A jealous Alpha was a dangerous Alpha.

“I don’t like it.”

“It’s not for you to like or dislike.” She replied crossing her arms over her chest. “If you came to tell me you’ve got a pack, I already know.”

Derek turned back and walked over to her until stood just behind her. In her bare feet, she only came up to his shoulders, she shivered when she felt him gently gather her hair in one hand and place it over one shoulder, then slide his hands around her waist and pulling her back into his chest. She dropped her arms to her sides as he slid his right hand on her stomach to keep her in place against him. But, she didn’t fight his hold. 

Genevieve turned her head to peer up at him from beneath her eyelashes. “What are you doing, Derek?” She whispered as she felt his head duck down over the side over her neck that lay exposed. “I won’t let you bite me, Derek.”

“No, not yet,” he agreed softly as he ducked his head down to sniff her neck. Unbeknownst to her, he shifted , claws emerging as his closed his left hand into a fist, sinking his claws into his skin until the blood began to drip from his hand. Then, he slid his right hand to her hip and turned her in his arms so she faced him as he took her hand right hand in his. 

“What are you … you’re bleeding,” Genevieve said as she stared at the bloodied left hand. “Ah,” she hissed. It happened so quickly that for a second she thought she’d imagined it. But, then she saw the felt the pain and saw that hand that Derek held was bleeding and she realized that Derek had cut her right hand with his claw. “What the hell! Why?”

He grasped her right hand with his left hand and blood made contact everything disappeared around them and all Genevieve could see was Derek. His eyes stayed honed on hers as they bled red.

“Take thy blood in mine. Binded together as one, one unit, one pair, forever thine, forever mine, forever yours.” 

After everything that happened today this was something that she had intuitively had known would happen. So all she felt at that moment was… acceptance. 

“Always,” Genevieve whispered back without breaking his gaze and felt a pulse of electricity travel between with a beam of light so bright that she shut her eyes as something slammed into place within her and knocked her unconscious. 

Derek released her hand to catch her as fell into him. He shifted to lift her unconscious form into his arms. He carried her up the stairs to her bedroom. With great care he placed her on the bed, checking briefly to make sure that she was still breathing. He was just going to get he settled on the other side of her bed when his cell phone begin to ring. He took it out of his pocket answering immediately fearing it would awaken her.

“What is it, Erica?” She told him about Stiles and his reaction to the strange beast that he’d encountered. “I’ll meet you at the school. Find Stiles for me.” He clicked off his phone and with a last glance at Genevieve, he rose and left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thoughts?


	5. Chapter Four

Derek parked his Camaro just at the end of Reyes family’s driveway. Sighing, he dragged a hand down his tired face, pinching the bridge of his nose.

It had been a long night. He was rather fortunate the night had at least has something of a good start with him sealing his bond to Genevieve. If he had know the night would have ended up with him wet, paralyzed and dependent on lanky armed Stiles Stilinski to keep him from drowning with a perpetually late Scott save him from the very monster Derek himself was hunting he would have stayed in bed beside Genevieve. And after his talk with Scott, the only thing he determined was that he had too much on his plate right now to add having to deal with a beast that could kill him. Nope, he was going to kill it before it could kill him. But, that would have to wait until tomorrow because all he needed right now was a change of clothes and then he was going to check on his mate. Then maybe he could finally get some sleep.

When he finally came out of his thoughts, he realized that Erica had made no moves to get out of his car, but instead was just sitting there watching him. He spared glanced over to her arching his brow. “What?”

Erica had her head inclined to the side with a curious expression on her face. “You’re scent is different.”

“Of course it is, I just spent two hours treading water with Stilinski.”

“No, it’s not that. It’s –I don’t know…it’s different from this morning.” If she expected a response from Derek it was clear she wasn’t going to get one when his eyebrows rose for a moment and his lips flat lined, before turning back to the road, popping the lock on his car. 

“I’ll see you in the morning, Erica.”

Erica sighed, jerking the door open. “Yes sir, Mr. Alpha sir.” She said smartly. “Good night, Derek.” 

After she got out of the car, Derek easily slid the car into gear and his lips broadening into a grin. The bond was altering his scent.

*

Genevieve groaned, her head throbbing as she turned away from bright overhead light. She couldn’t figure out why she’d left her light on before she’d fallen asleep. In fact, she didn’t even remember coming to her room as her mind started to clear she realized that she wasn’t dressed for bed at all. She was lying on top of her covers in her leggings and tank top with her bra on which was not like her at all. 

Slowly—very slowly—she sat up and checked the clock on her bedside table. It was 2:35 AM. Good, that meant she had a few hours still to sleep this off. With a sigh, she flicked off the light and crawled beneath the covers pulling off her leggings and bra, before tossing both on the other side of the bed. Wrapping her arms around the silk pillow she closed her eyes and attempted to go back to sleep.

“I wonder what it says about your powers of observation when you just performed that whole routine after sleeping so soundly and for all that you still didn’t even notice that I was here.” Derek tsked from his position back against the headboard with his long legs stretched across the bed crossed at the ankle. With one brow arched he held her silken bra in his hands.

Genevieve’s eyes snapped open as she jerked up in her bed, causing the comforter to drop to her lap as she stared at the Alpha lounging in her bed. “Derek!? What—huh…” She blinked again her brown eyes bleary as she squinted at him in confusion, “Derek, I-uh, why are you here?”

“You don’t remember?” Derek smirked. “You invited me.” He dangled her bra toward her.

“I did?” Staring hazily at the object in his hand for a few moments before realizing what it was and snatching the bra from his hands and shoving under her pillow. “I don’t remember that.”

“What _do_ you remember?”

“I drunk a bottle of wine or two and … we were talking … my hand got cut,” she started and raised the hand up to show him. Only the hand she raised was perfectly fine so she held her other hand up and it was fine too. “I-I thought it was cut but I might still be a little drunk.”

“You weren’t that drunk, Genevieve. I cut your hand but I healed it when I -,”

“You cut me— I- how did you know that the cut would heal?” Genevieve whispered as she stared at her hands and then her gaze met Derek’s as he stared at her. “The blood bond.” She dropped her hands to her lap. “Everything I’ve ever read said that healing wounds takes a lot power from a new bond. And that initiating a blood bond—it would change me.”

“You healed so quickly today our blood mixed but more importantly because your body remembers the bond and it pulled what was needed to heal the wound. Now, your scent _is_ changing, it’s not completely human anymore. It’s subtle now, just a hint of something more. The stronger our bond grows the more it will change until it’s complete.”

“Why, why did you do this?”

“I did it because it was time,” Derek answered quietly. “But, that’s all I’ve done. I won’t go any further until you’re ready. I want you to want this Genevieve. All of it. So the choice is yours with the bite and everything else, you understand?”

“And what if don’t? What if, I’m not ready to take this any further?”

“Then, I’ll wait for you. I’ll wait until you are ready.” Derek was quiet for a moment her eyes falling from hers. 

“Why?”

“When I’m around you my wolf is calm and that hasn’t happened with anyone for a long time. There is so much anger and pain, but with you I’m free.” His eyes returned to hers with a sad twist to his lips. “I used to be okay with Laura because she grounded me … but now… she’s gone and there’s no one else.” 

“Okay,” Genevieve replied quietly after a moment, easing back against her pillows still holding his gaze.

“Okay?”

“For now—but, I’ll have questions,” she hedged.

Derek nodded slowly, his soft green gaze lit on hers. “I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.”

“Good, but tomorrow because right now, all I want to do is sleep.”

“Fair enough,” Derek said, starting to leave the bed only to be pulled back by Genevieve as she grabbed his arm. 

“Don’t leave.” She peered at him from beneath long black lashes. “Please, stay.”

“Are you sure?” 

“Derek we’re only going to be sleeping. And I’m fairly certain that there’s a chance I won’t remember any of this conversation in the morning. It’ll be easier if you’re here.” Derek nodded and settled back down in the bed. 

Genevieve shifted in the bed until she was lying on her pillow and reached back to grab his hand pulling him in back of her. They spent the next several minutes shifting until they were both comfortable. Finally ending up with Derek on top of the covers with Genevieve draped over him beneath the covers both sound asleep.

*

Genevieve woke the next morning to the ringing of her alarm. She rolled away from her position with her head on Derek’s chest and her arm draped across his waist to slap the alarm off. She opened her eyes noting the darken room on her back as her mind raced with everything that had happened the night before. 

The bond was re-ignited, she couldn’t explain it but she could feel the vines of the bond wrapping around her from the inside, and for some reason, she didn’t feel like running from the room screaming. It felt … right, natural like it had always been there the missing piece in her life.

She glanced to the clock on her left and noted the time. She was due to meet Jacs for a morning yoga session in thirty minutes. But, based on the way her head was pounding, that wasn’t happening this morning. She plucked up her phone and dialed a number. “Hey, Jacs this is Gen, I am not going to make the session but I’m still on for coffee this morning. I’ll see you at the café.” She sat up against the pillows as she hung up the phone after leaving the voicemail and glanced over at Derek, surprised to see that he was still asleep. She reached over to smooth his furrowed brow but his eyes popped open, her hand dropped to the bed. 

“Who’s Jacs?” Derek asked as he shifted to sit up.

“Jacs is a friend; we workout together. But, we need to talk so …” she left the rest unsaid becoming self-conscious as Derek stared at her. Realizing that she was in the same clothes as the previous night and if they were going to have a serious talk which they needed to it couldn’t be done with her in panties and a tank top and him fully dressed. “I’m going to get take a shower and get dressed first. You can help yourself to anything in the kitchen.” 

“Sure,” Derek said as he watched Genevieve glance around the bed for something keeping his expression purposefully straight. He silently held up her leggings from the previous night.

“Ri-ight. Thanks,” she whispered gratefully as she pulled them on from beneath the covers and rose from the bed with her bra in hand. She calmly went to her dresser pulling out a few items and then to her closet to pull out a black dress on a hanger. With everything in hand, she went into the bathroom and shut the door. 

Derek dropped back down on the bed. This was awkward. It wasn’t supposed to be this awkward. 

 

Twenty minutes later, Genevieve opened the bathroom door to let the steam stream out as she wrapped her short robe around her. She glanced over at her bed to see that Derek wasn’t there anymore. Figuring that he was in the kitchen she returned to her bathroom to pull the clip from her hair. Fortunately, a night without taking care of her hair hadn’t left it in too a bad shape, well nothing that a little moisturizer and a flat iron couldn’t cure away. She made quick work of it and fixed her hair leaving it resting on her shoulders. Then, she turned and pulled her dress off the hanger and slipped into it.

It was a knee-length sleeveless black dress that she’s bought on impulse with Jacs on their last shopping trip. She was leaning over her dresser digging through her jewelry box when Derek arrived back in the room. He said nothing merely dropped a tall glass filled to the rim with a red liquid on her dresser with on a coaster. She glanced up at Derek not sure what she was more surprised at, the juice or the fact that he’d remembered to bring a coaster.

“It’s a hangover remedy,” he offered as he leaned back against her dresser. 

Genevieve picked up the glass and sniffed it with a raised brow. “Tomato juice?” 

“And some other odds and ends that you probably don’t want to know. Drink it, trust me it’ll work.”

“All of it?” She asked with a grimace as she raised the glass to her lips.

“At least half.”

“Here goes nothing,” she muttered under her breath before raising the glass and drinking it until half of it was gone. She handed the glass back to Derek and ran for her bathroom to brush her teeth again. After a few minutes she returned, “That was disgusting.”

“I know but works, Laura used to swear by it.” Derek replied as he placed the glass on the coaster and returned to leaning against the dresser watching as Genevieve put on the gold necklace that she had taken out of her jewelry box. “So, I know we need to talk, but there is something we need to do first.”

“Okay,” she asked as she started to do her make-up in front of the mirror on her dresser. “What?”

“We need to shield you.”

Genevieve closed the mascara and placed it back in the make-up bag. “What do you mean?”

“We need to shield your presence from the pack.” 

She paused after rubbing some lip gloss over her lips with her pinky and glanced at him in the mirror. “Why?”

Derek pursed his lips into a grim line before answering. “The bond is slowly altering your scent and most werewolves will be able to smell the subtle nuances in your scent to know you’ve bonded to an Alpha—.”

“But, your pack is made up of bitten teenagers who wouldn’t be able to control their reactions to scenting their Alpha’s mate and if they get caught they wouldn’t automatically shield my connection to you despite the danger.” She finished to which he nodded, lips pressed into a grim line. Genevieve raised a hesitant hand and patted his chest. “I get it but it’s probably why you shouldn’t have built a pack of teenagers. They are not exactly the most rational beings, shape shifters or not.”

“Well, it’s done now.” He added defensively as he crossed his arms over his chest.

“I wasn’t judging, just stating a fact,” she reproached with a sigh before she turned and gave him her full attention. “Derek, this won’t work if you expect some sort of blind obedience from me. That’s just not me. If I think you’re wrong, I’ll tell you and if I have questions I’ll ask, regardless if you disagree with me or not. That’s how a relationship works, give and take. So the real question is how do you see this working? Are we building an actual relationship or is this just another way for you to build power?”

“To be honest, I didn’t think that far ahead.” Derek replied. And he hadn’t, all he’d thought about was building a strong pack and how a blood bond potentially double that strength.

Genevieve gave him a small smile tilting her head to the side. “Well, I appreciate your honesty at least. How about we figure it all out one step at a time and see how things progress. So first things first, you said something about shielding me?”

Derek nodded again and dropped his arms. “It’s called tracing actually.”

“Okay, so how does it work?”

“Close your eyes and clear your mind of everything.” Genevieve stood up straight and closed her eyes, taking a calming breath to center herself and clear her mind. “Now, focus on my voice and think about the bond between us… can you see it?” He raised his hands to her temples using his touch to guide her toward seeing the thread of the bond that connected them.  
“I-I can’t see it but I can _feel_ it … it’s like a simmering thread, a line connecting me to you.” The connection was vibrating, pulsing like a heartbeat, steady and strong, and his heartbeat matching hers.

“Now, follow the path of the line and trace it from you to me. What do you see?”

In her mind’s eye, could see the line to Derek. His presence was like a bright beacon, radiating warmth and something more, something she didn’t dare identify. There were three other lines that branched off in separate directions connected to him. The first was dark and fading, the second was bright and pulsating and the last held a connection to three other lines, a little web. “I see web of connections in different places.”

“The web is my pack. When you view think about the link you’ll see them. The pack can sense you through their link but only as an extension to their Alpha, to me. They won’t be able to identify you beyond that.”

“Can I sense them? Would I be able to trace them?”

“Yes, but only through me.”

“Okay, then is it done?” Genevieve asked gingerly opening one eye. 

Derek rolled his eyes, but gave a quick nod as he dropped his hands to his sides

“Good.” she said opening both eyes brightly. “Now, I have favor to ask of you. In the spirit of building a relationship or whatever, there’s been something troubling me and I was wondering if you could help me.”

Derek had to stop himself from rolling his eyes again, “What is it?”

“There’s a student missing. I’d like you to find him for me. His name is Isaac Lahey, his father was just murdered and he disappeared from the police station a few days ago…” She paused sensing a tug on their bond. “Isaac, he’s one your Betas, isn’t he? He didn’t just disappear out of the police station, did he?”

With a raised brow, Derek shifted back against the dresser. “I took him out. It was his first full moon, he couldn’t stay locked up.”

“Where has he been staying? I know it’s not at his house.”

“With me,” was all Derek said.

“Derek, you can’t just take him. There are laws to protect him. He needs help—” she started unable to suppress the part of her that was a guidance counselor.

“I know that and I’m protecting him.”

“So how does that work when you’re here with me? Where is he now?”

“He’s safe. The safest place he could be, even if his father were still alive, trust me.”

“I-fine, I’ll admit that you’re probably more than capable of protecting him. But, he’s still a minor, he needs some stability and he needs to be in school instead of running around as a fugitive.”

“Okay.”

“Okay?”

“Yes,” Derek replied with a nod. “I’ll make sure that Isaac returns to school. But, you need to do something for me in return. I want you to stay away from Lydia Martin and Jackson Whittenmore today.”

“Why?”

“This is supposed to a relationship– give and take, remember. You want Isaac back in school, then you’ll stay away from Lydia and Jackson today.”

They stared each other down for a moment before Genevieve just shrugged her shoulders arms crossing over her chest.

“Alright, fine. You get Isaac back in school today and you have a deal. And, for future reference, I don’t like having my words thrown back in my face.” 

She turned back to finish her makeup surprised to see Derek appear behind of her in the mirror, staring at their reflection. “What?”

“I’m not an idiot Genevieve, I was merely making a point. I understand how a relationship works, but I can’t be the one always giving and you can’t be the one always taking. It’s gotta go both ways or it doesn’t work.”

“Point made and taken,” Genevieve replied with a slight nod to their relationship. 

“Good, on that note, I have to go. I’ll see you later?” Derek asked as he stepped away from her and left the mirror.

“Yeah, I see you later.” Genevieve watched in the mirror as Derek turned and left her bedroom, while finishing a few last touches. 

It occurred to her later, as she slid on her pumps from her closet and grabbed a cream sweater that she never did ask how he got into her house. She made a mental note to talk to him about that the next time she saw him as she locked up before pulling her car from the garage. 

Genevieve drove to little café. Immediately spotting Jacqueline Helm, or Jacs as she preferred to be called, waiting at a small table with two cups of coffee and two croissants. Jacs was a French teacher in her third year at Beacon Hills High. She was a tall, slim woman with long black curly hair and piercing green eyes. Although, happily married to her college sweetheart, she was one of the most popular teachers at the school with the young male students who constantly enrolled in her classes. She and Genevieve had found an immediate kinship when they’d met at their yoga class and had begun to work out with each other when they realized they worked at the same school. 

“You’re late,” Jacs scolded lightly as the other woman sat down.

“Don’t remind me.” Genevieve said as she took a sip of the cup of coffee that Jacqueline had bought for her. 

“So, who was he?” Jacs prompted with her chin on hands with a curious smile.

Genevieve sputtered, nearly spitting out her beverage. “What?” She took a bite of her croissant.

“Gen, you realize in the month or so that we’ve been meeting to workout you’ve never been late. I mean, not even a minute. Whereas I,” she gestured to herself, “have been _slightly_ challenged in getting there on time every day. I figure that only thing that would make you late is something that would throw that analytical mind of yours for a loop. So who is he, inquiring minds want to know?”

Genevieve calmly chewed the remainder of her croissant before responding. “Let’s just say it’s complicated and leave it at that.”

“There _is_ a guy!” Jacs bounced in her seat in amusement. “So last night … what kind of loops did this guy have you turning?”

Genevieve rolled her eyes with a sigh as she took another sip of her coffee. “I don’t know why you’re so excited about this; trust me last night was not what you think. Nothing happened – we talked, we bonded and I fell asleep – end of story.”

“Jeesh! Gen, how am _I_ supposed to live vicariously through you if you don’t uphold your end of the deal. Was there at least some exchange of bodily fluids?”

“Yes, like I said before, it’s not what you think. Trust me,” Genevieve added sardonically as glanced down that hand that Derek had cut to re-activate the bond. 

“That was weirdly vague yet gratifying at the same time. So, I’m thinking this definitely calls for a girls’ night. We should go dancing tonight.”

“I don’t know Jacs, aren’t we a little old for the club scene. Besides, Beacon Hills is not exactly the hot bed for nightlife is it?”

“True, but we do have a gay bar that serves the best mojitos. And, I have it on the authority of my brother-in-law that it’s a good time. So what do you say?”

“I say, I’ll think about it. But, I have a meeting with our illustrious new principal in an hour that I need to prepare for.” 

“Let’s go then,” Jac said as she and Genevieve picked up their coffees and headed out of the shop to begin their day.

* 

Genevieve was returning from her meeting with Gerard Argent when she saw a tall young man in a leather jacket, lurking outside at her office with a young blonde woman. 

“Mr. Lahey, I presume. You’re here early. Please come into my office, we need to have a little chat. Miss …”

“Reyes, Erica Reyes,” the blonde offered with a confused expression on her face as Genevieve glided by her to open the office door. 

“Miss Reyes, you can have a seat and wait we won’t be long.” She directed Erica to the empty chairs outside her office. “After you,” she beckoned Isaac into her office and closed the door. “Mr. Lahey, I’m glad that you could make it in today. I trust all of your problems with the Sheriff’s office have been settled.” She sat down behind her desk.

Isaac, seated in the chair in front of her desk, grabbed a red stress ball off the desk and tossed it back and forth between his hands. “Yeah. So, are we through here?” His expression bored, tossing the ball back to exact corner he’d grabbed it from without even a stray bounce and standing posed to leave. “I really need to get back to class. I’ve missed a lot of work.” 

“Not quite, sit down Isaac.” He followed her quiet order without a comment. “Social services has contacted the school; they are very concerned about your living situation. In cases like yours, they generally like to place you with a relative or a responsible adult who can take care of your needs.”

“I don’t need anybody; I can take care of myself.” Isaac retorted clenching his jaw.

“I understand that, but in the eyes of the law, you are still a minor. So I need to know where you’ve been staying, who you’ve been staying with and what the living situation is like to determine if Social Services will need to place you in a foster home.”

“I’ve been staying with someone, he’s like family.” Isaac hedged swallowing nervously.

“Good,” Genevieve added with a calm smile. “Then, that will make this easy.” She shifted some files on her desk around until she found the correct one. “I have some paperwork that Social Services will need your guardian to complete,” she started only to stop when Isaac pulled some folded papers out of his jacket and tossed them on her desk. She opened the papers and saw that they were copies of the completed forms. “Great.”

“That’s the school’s copy. Social Services has the originals along with a judge’s approval for temporary custody. So is there anything else ‘cause I really need to get to class.” He rose to his feet waiting to be dismissed.

Genevieve snorted softly as she glanced through the completed forms as she noted that they had been completed all that morning. “No, I guess we’re finished. But, do me a favor?”

Isaac gave a quick nod with a cocky sneer. “Tell Derek, I said well played. But, let me give you a warning Isaac, if you disappear from school without so much as a doctor’s note, I’ll blow the whistle on this little faux arrangement you have, is that clear?” The sneer dropped as Isaac nodded in compliance again. “Good, then you can go.” He left swiftly telling Erica that they needed to go.

“Unbelievable,” Genevieve sighed as leaned back in her chair as she pressed her hands her temples. Seconds later, there was another knock at her door. She rose to answer it surprised to see Allison Argent there. 

*

After school was over Genevieve had driven over to the Animal Clinic to talk to Deaton. She arrived at the clinic unsurprised to find it empty except for the many animals he held in cages. She walked directly to his office and knocked on the open door.

“Genevieve, I wasn’t expecting you.” Deaton said as he saw her standing in the doorway of his office. He finished his last note from the visit with the Fluffy the cat that had ended early and pushed the folder to the side.

“I had an unexpected visit from Allison Argent today. She asked me to translate a copy of the Argent family Bestiary, your doing I’m sure. Why didn’t you tell me that there was a kanima?” Genevieve asked as she walked into the office standing just behind the chair in front of the old oak desk.

“You didn’t seem very interested when I stopped by last night. Were you able to translate the bestiary?”

Genevieve shook her head. “It was a very, loose translation; you know Archaic Latin isn’t exactly my strong suit. But, that’s not the point. A kanima is an omen and with Lydia’s immunity it means something is coming. Does Derek know?”

“I am not aware of what Derek does or doesn’t know. He doesn’t talk to me.”

“But, you’re his advisor, you should tell him.” Genevieve protested. “He and his pack need to be warned of the danger or the kanima will be the least of his problems. And especially with Gerard Argent lurking around, it’s dangerous.”

“I am well aware of my responsibilities as an advisor, Genevieve. And I will do what needs to be done but in my way.” 

“Which means what exactly?”

“Derek’s probably going to try to kill the kanima as we speak, which means he knows or already suspects what’s coming. The only thing I can I do is help Scott help him figure what to do.”

“What kind of convoluted bullshit is that? Derek is an Alpha, not Scott, you owe it to him—,”

“I owe him _nothing_!” Deaton rose to his feet with a quiet yell. “Look, Genevieve I can’t help Derek if he won’t trust me. And he doesn’t, right now he doesn’t seem to trust anyone except for Scott. So the best that I can do is prepare him for the inevitability of what comes.”

“Derek trusts me and I won’t standby do nothing.” She turned to leave when Deaton called her back.

“You forget yourself Genevieve, you were not brought here for him or did you forget about Lydia?”

“I can do both.”

“No, you can’t. Until your bond with Derek is settled, your responsibility is Lydia.” Deaton called out. 

Genevieve said nothing as she stormed out of the Animal Clinic and returned to her car. She picked up her phone from the cup holder and dialed Jacqueline. “Jacs looks like I could use that night out. Where did you say the club was?”


	6. Chapter Five

**Chapter Five**

Genevieve stood in front of her closet in her black lace bra and panties searching for a top. She finally located the silky jade halter top that she wanted and pulled it on and zipping the side close. She paired the top with a pair of dark wash jeans and a pair of black stilettos she dug out of her closet. The heels giving her petite frame the height she always craved growing up.

She shook her hair out letting the tousled curls rest on her shoulders as she added the final touches to her makeup with some dark eyeliner to go with the smoky eye shadow and mauve lip gloss to her lips. With one last look in the mirror she grabbed her car keys, cash and her cell phone which she slid in her back pocket.

It wasn’t until she was well on her way to the club that Genevieve realized she had not heard from Derek all day and they definitely were due a conversation about Argents and his pack. But, that would wait until later, for now she was going to enjoy a rare night out with a friend. She parked a block away from the club, after securng her car with the alarm she walked over to the main entrance of the club where Jacqueline stood by the bouncer waiting for her. 

“Gen,” Jacqueline called out with her arms outstretched as she saw her petite friend come up rocking the black stilettos that had them at the same height. 

“I’m not late, am I?”

“Of course not, you’re just in time.” Jacqueline grabbed her hand to pull Genevieve forward to link arms with her as she winked at the bouncer as they slipped by. “Thanks, Marco.” Genevieve allowed herself to pulled along into the club with throbbing beat of the music. “So drink or dance?”

Genevieve looked out at the all the men on dance floor and smiled, “Dance.”

*

Derek took off after the kanima. He tracked the creature into a club, watching as it scaled the side of the building and crawled in through the rafters. Knowing that he needed to get into the club he was walked around to the front and with a flash of his smile to the bouncer he bypassed the line and walked into the club. 

As he entered the club, he was deafened by the throbbing bass that he had all but felt outside. He scanned the club as he walked around and noticed that Scott and Stiles were standing by bar. He disappeared onto the dance floor through the throng of bodies dancing and grinding against each other paying no attention to the various men who tried to catch his eye. He glanced at the ceiling for the kanima when he felt the pull of his bond that let him know that his mate was near. Instantly the search for the kanima was forgotten as scanned the dance floor for her. He took in the heady scent of her citrusy perfume before he spotted her dancing with a group of men.

His eyes honed in on her being spun in a circle by one of the men. She had her hands propped on the man’s shoulders and grooved with him to the beat of the music. Her partner leaned down whispering something in her ear that caused her to toss her head back in laughter as his hand shifted to the small of her back to bring her closer. She was smiling as she threw her hands up in the air to bop to the beat of the music.

He was moving to her before he knew what happened, pushing men out of the way until he was in back of her. He grasped her hand in the air and spun her around to him; her former dance partner took one look at the intense single minded focus on his face with eyes flickering red as he stared down at Genevieve and backed away grabbing another nearby man to dance with. 

“Derek,” Genevieve sighed slightly out of breath as she crashed into him, her hands landing on his jacket covered chest. Knowing instinctively it was him even before she had a chance to see who had spun her around. 

For an instant everything and everyone faded into the background as stared at one another, her trying to catch her breath and him with his eyes glowing red. “Your eyes,” she said as the red slowly receded to the familiar green.

Derek slid one hand to the small of her back, pulling her closer to him, and slowly lowering his head to hers their gazes locked, when he caught the motion of the kanima’s tail swinging in his peripheral vision. And he remembered why he was here jerking his head up to stare at the ceiling to see the kanima less than six feet away from them.

Genevieve patted his chest wondering why he stopped when she saw his eyes were now trained on a spot somewhere above her head. “Derek, what are you—” she asked trailing his gaze before she gasped unwittingly huddling in closer to his chest.

There was a Giant Lizard like creature crawling on the ceiling. “Is that—is that a kanima?” She gulped. 

Derek dropped his gaze to her in surprise. “You know what a kanima is?” 

However, she never got a chance to respond as Derek, realizing how vulnerable Genevieve was on the dance floor with the kanima above them, put a hand on the small of her back and propelled her in the way opposite direction of where they saw the kanima. 

“Derek! We-I need to…” Genevieve protest trying to turn back around, but Derek remained focused steering her away with a hand on her arm and the other at her back. When he finally stopped they were on the opposite side of the club near the fire exit. 

“You need to get out of here.”

Wearing her stilettos, it’s a wonder she didn’t stumble over on the walk there. Now she stood a few inches above his shoulders but he was still too tall and too broad for her to see around him so she nudged him to the side with her freehand to track the kanima’s movements. “It’s looking for something or someone. Do you know who?”

Derek shook his head as watched the kanima and then his gaze fell on Scott who was approaching someone on the dance floor. “But, Scott does.”

“Shit,” Genevieve hissed as she grabbed his jacket in surprise when the kanima used the cover of the fog pumping out from the fog machine to drop from the ceiling. “It’s on the ground now. Can you get it out of here without anyone getting injured?”

“I’m going to try but I need you gone.” Derek replied urgently, when she returned her gaze to his. “If you’re here, I’ll be distracted.”

Genevieve gave a quick nod. “Okay, but I came with Jacs, I’ll grab her and go.” She released her tight hold on his jacket to let him go. He nodded and pushed back onto the dance floor. Trusting Derek to take care of himself, she scanned the club for Jacqueline who she found laughing at bar.

She walked swiftly toward her friend catching her mid-laugh. “We need to go.”

Jacqueline turned with a ready smile. “Why, I thought you and tall, dark and studly over there were having a very good time.”

“It’s complicated,” Genevieve started as she caught the eye of the bartender and pulled a twenty out of her pocket to pay for the drinks. She grabbed Jacqueline’s hand and pulled her along as she attempted to make her way out of the club.

“As in, the guy from last night, ‘it’s complicated’?”

“Yeah and I’ll tell you all about it once we’re out of the club.” Genevieve said as she hustled Jacqueline out of the club just as the screams started.

*

Derek arrived back at the train depot no worse for wear, to see his Betas waiting for him. Unfortunately, he wasn’t really in the mood to deal with them or their questions.

“Did you catch it?” Isaac asked as he followed Derek onto the train car. 

Derek ignored him and stripped off his jacket, tossing onto one of the empty seats. “No, I didn’t catch it.” He heard a huff and knew that Isaac was preparing to ask another question so he silenced it with raised brow and walked out of the train car. “You guys need to go home and get some sleep. You have school in morning,”

“But what about the kanima?” Boyd asked as he stood leaning back again the train car with Erica beside him.

“There’s nothing more we can do about the kanima tonight. That’s why I want you in school tomorrow; I want to know who doesn’t show up.”

“But, that doesn’t mean we all need to go?” Erica protested as she walked forward with her arms crossed over her chest. “Why do we all need to go?”

“Because I said so. With the exception of Isaac, the Argents don’t know for sure who the rest of the pack members are and I’d like to keep it that way for as long as possible.” Derek replied as glanced from one Beta to the other.

“Fine,” Erica said with a pout as strutted toward Derek running her hand over his bicep as she past him. “Well, are you coming?”

Boyd snorted glancing at Isaac inclining his head with amusement as they watched Erica’s antics with Derek before following her path. Isaac’s response was to roll his eyes with a sigh as he did the same.

Derek frowned staring at his bicep where Erica had caressed him before turning to watch his betas leave for the night. He was going to have to talk to her about that, Genevieve wasn’t a werewolf so he wouldn’t have to explain why Erica of all his beta’s was more prevalent to scent him, but it needed to be handled either way before it got out of hand. He wondered briefly where she might have gotten the impression that there was something more going on with their relationship than there was. He was going to have to disabuse her of that notion because nothing would come of it especially not with the bond. 

He pushed that thought out of his head as he turned, leaving the jacket behind he climbed the stairs up the old train depot and took off in a run. Within twenty minutes, he came upon Genevieve’s house in a neighborhood just beyond the Beacon Hills town proper. She lived in mid-size two story house that was less than ten years old, a newer property that had been built just before the fire. Of the many questions that had come up now that the bond was re-ignited, he wondered how she was able to afford such a home on a public school teacher’s salary and made a note to ask her at some other time as he stopped in front of the small walkway that was her porch. 

He raised his hand to knock on the door when it swung open revealing Genevieve still dressed in her outfit from the club in her bare feet and her face scrubbed clean of any makeup. Her black hair was still tousled about her shoulders as she shifted to lean back against her door; she took his raised hand pulling him into her house. “Why even bother knocking.” 

The door slammed shut behind him.

*

Genevieve led him into the kitchen off of the hallway instead of the living room. He followed her without word and moved to stand against the counter when she dropped his hand before heading to her refrigerator. She opened the door and pulled out a bottle of water. “Do you want anything?”

“No.”

“Suit yourself,” she replied as she bumped the door closed with her hip and twisted the bottle of water open and drank from it. With a sigh, she led the way out of kitchen down the hallway into the living room with Derek following behind her. “So, I know we have a lot of things to deal with but there’s something I’ve been wondering.” Genevieve moved to sit down on her sofa folding her legs to her side; he merely raised a brow in response so she continued. “How have you been getting into my house? I checked the lock, I know you didn’t break it and I don’t leave my windows open.”

“Wow, really. That’s the first question you want to ask me after almost getting attacked by a kanima?”

“Well for one, _I_ didn’t get attacked. I got out of there before anything happened—,”

“You shouldn’t have even been there!” Derek interrupted with a growl as he hit the mantle. “If I hadn’t warned you then you could have been one of the people attacked.” 

“But, I wasn’t. Besides, Jacs and I needed a girls night and the club is just as good a spot as any,” she replied her tone sharp placing her bottled water on coaster on the side table as she rose to her feet. “And I suggest you think very carefully about the next thing that you say to me Derek. We may be bonded but I am not one of your betas, you don’t give me orders. That’s not how this works!”

“Well, maybe it should!” Derek turned angrily away from the fireplace, his green eyes bleeding red. “I can’t protect you if—,”

“I didn’t ask you for protection!” She snapped and then took a breath to get a hold of her temper. “Derek when I saw the kanima, you asked me to leave and I did. I don’t understand where this is coming from so you need to explain it to me.” Calmly, she walked over to him grasping his forearm, “Please.”

“Because the bonded isn’t settled yet I’m more protective … when I walked into the club and felt you there I lost concentration. My need to protect you from danger overruled everything.” He explained staring into the soothing brown of her eyes and the calming warmth of her touch allowed the red to slowly recede from his vision leaving the warm green. “I-I can’t control it and the bond demands that I put you first, protect you at all costs.” 

“But, I wasn’t in any danger, Derek.”

He placed his hand over hers, “You don’t know that. And with everything going on, that can’t happen again. I can’t afford to have my attention divided.”

“What does that mean?”

“I need you to stay away.”

“Stay away from what?”

“The pack … everything until I can take care of the kanima.”

“For how long?”

“For as long as it takes.”

“But, what about the pack? Aren’t they just as vulnerable as I am?”

“No, it’s different with them. Besides, I’m training them so that they can defend themselves. You have no way of defending yourself,” he paused as she opened her mouth to protest. “Not in the same way that they can. Genevieve, until I have some idea what the kanima’s purpose is, it’s too dangerous for you. So I’m asking you to let me deal with this for now.” He amended acknowledging that he couldn’t keep her out of it indefinitely.

“Before I agree, there are some things I want to know,” she hedged pulling her hand from beneath his as she re-took her seat on the sofa across from his position. He gave a quick nod of agreement. “Who is it? The kanima, I mean.”

“We thought it might be Lydia this morning.”

“It can’t be Lydia,” Genevieve replied with a shake of her head.

“It’s not, but, why do you say that?” Derek asked curious.

“Lydia was bit by your uncle and was immune to the bite. It’s means that her blood carries immunity to all supernatural beings – shape shifters specifically.”

Derek agreed to her summation about Lydia and bite when it occurred to him that he’d never mentioned it to her before. They only ever talked about the pack— never about Peter or how he’d become an Alpha. “How did you know about Lydia and the kanima too?”

She relaxed back in the sofa tucking her legs on the side of her. “Derek, why do you think I’m here? It’s the same reason I helped you four years ago. _This_ is what I do.”

“So you’re here to help Lydia?”

“Yes, her immunity isn’t exactly rare. But, its occurrence, after everything with Peter, makes it a delicate situation and it needs to be monitored.”

“I’ve never heard of it before, the situation with Lydia,” he clarified. “You either live or die from bite.”

“Or you become a kanima and if it’s not Lydia then that must mean its Jackson.”

“What do you know about the kanima?”

Genevieve shrugged. “Pretty much the same thing as you I assume. I’ve heard the same stories but assumed it was just that. A giant lizard crawling around on ceiling isn’t something one sees every day. In light of our situation, I’ll make you a promise I’ll stay out of everything dealing with the pack and the kanima as long as I can. But, if there comes a time when I’m _needed_ and I not saying there will be don’t expect me to do nothing. It’s not in my nature.”

“Fair enough, if that happens we’ll deal with it then.”

“Fine,” Genevieve agreed glad that they’d got that settled. She rose to her feet and headed toward her the steps leading to her bedroom. She paused on the staircase when she realized that he hadn’t followed her. “Derek,” she called and turning as she heard his footsteps echoing as he came to stand at the bottom of the staircase. “Are you coming?”

Derek’s brow rose in surprise as she held out a hand from him to take. He’d been planning on going back to his warehouse to sleep. “Are you sure?”

“Are you going to answer every question with a question? I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t want you there. Honestly, I’ve never had this much trouble getting a man to sleep with me; you’re starting to give me a complex.”

“Well, I wouldn’t want to do that.” He muttered as he took the few steps to grab her hand and allowed her to pull him to her bedroom.

She dropped his hand as soon as they entered the room to turn on her bedside lamp. She slipped into the bathroom and returned shortly thereafter ready for bed in a pair of low-riding shorts and a tank top. Derek was perched on top of her bed with his shoes off but his jeans and t-shirt on. “You know you won’t scar me if you make yourself comfortable, Derek.”

Derek snorted softly as he stood up and stripped off his shirt. Then, he unbuttoned his jeans and took then off tossing them and the shirt in the chair by the window seat leaving him standing in his snug black boxer-briefs. “That better?”

Her eyes roved over him from head to toe. “Much better.” She pulled back the covers and slid into the bed and waited for him to do the same. “By the way, I met part of your pack today. Did you really get temporary custody of Isaac?”

“That’s why the paperwork says.” 

“Huh, just so you know, at some point we are going to have to serious discussion about you becoming Isaac’s legal guardian.”

“But, not tonight.” He said drolly his head angled to her watching her get comfortable under the covers.

“Nope, not tonight.” She agreed as she leaned over and cut of the light. Then, she shifted over to him tucking herself into his side and closing her eyes. Within minutes they both were asleep.

*

Genevieve leaned back against the counter in the teacher’s lounge as she sipped from her cup of coffee. Typical of his nature, Derek had been gone that morning when she’d woken well rested. So she’d gone for a run early that morning before coming in. Her morning had been filled with an early staff meeting during which Gerard had let the faculty know that the school had been wired with cameras and with an addition security force on hand. She knew then that the Argents were aware of the kanima and possibly the members of Derek’s pack and wanted to watch them.

She made a mental note to tell Derek about the changes in the school’s security precautions because it could only lead to trouble if they caught him loitering around on any of the footage.

“So … how long have you and Derek Hale been hitting the sheets?”

“What!” Thankful that she’d already swallowed her coffee, Genevieve managed not to do a spit take when Jacqueline popped up next to her filling her mug with coffee.

“Oh you heard me. I can’t believe that you’ve been holding out on me about this hook-up. When I saw him last night, I couldn’t place him but, I knew he reminded me of someone. Then, this morning it hit me.”

Genevieve snorted ironically as she noted the room was empty before responding. “You see us together for less than five minutes and we’re automatically sleeping with each other?” 

“You’re damn skippy! You could have been standing by the man for five seconds and I would have known something was up with the two of you. You’re bodies practically sing it when you’re together. And, I took class on how to read body language, I thought it would help with teaching teenagers or some shit like that. But honey, the whole club knew about you two. So, what’s the dish?”

“No more than what I told you last night. We knew each other before and it’s … complicated and messy.”

“I bet it is.” Jacqueline smirked. “But, I’ll be a good friend and not ask for all the _dirty_ details. But, if it ever gets uncomplicated…”

“You’ll be the first to know.” Genevieve replied sardonically as the second period warning bell rang. 

“There’s my page. Are we still on for lunch?” Jacqueline asked as she grabbed her mug and walked along with Genevieve to the door.

“Yeah, I’ll see you then.” Genevieve gave a small wave then took off in the opposite direction toward her office maneuvering through the rushing crush of students along the way. She was surprised when she got to the door of her office to see someone bending down to look at the books on her shelf and even more so when she saw who it was. “Mr. Lahey, I wasn’t aware that we had an appointment this morning. Is there something I can do for you?”

Isaac jerked up in surprise as he turned to see her standing in the doorway of her office. “Uh, I’m sorry; we don’t have an appointment or anything.” He shifted to the side of her desk as she entered the office and placed her mug on a coaster on the desk. “Um, Ms. Fernsides wouldn’t let me return to class until I have an excuse note for missing yesterday.”

“Of course, I can give you a note. Just give me one moment.” She searched on her desk for the pad of excuse notes. Once, she located it she quickly jotted down the note and signed her name to it. She tore it from the pad and offered it to Isaac who was staring at her with a frown. “Isaac, is there something wrong?” Her question seemed to snap him out of his trance as his frown disappeared.

“No,” he said taking the note from her. “I-thank you.” He grabbed his bag off the chair and pulled it over his shoulder. He paused briefly at the doorway inclining his head to side and sniffed the air. Confused, he turned and left wondering why the new guidance counselor reminded him so much of Derek.


	7. Chapter Six

**Chapter Six**

Derek had spent the evening putting his Beta’s through the paces again. Although, they seemed to be coming along, he didn’t see the defensive edge that Scott had naturally with any of his Betas except for Boyd.

Erica and Isaac were both too enthralled with the power of being Betas than understanding that the basic defensive techniques weren’t just about having power over your opponent. It was about knowing how to defend yourself by any means necessary without assuming that just because you were stronger you could win any fight. Their strength wouldn’t matter if opponents were human and knew how to weaken them. It was this knowledge that made him push them so hard.

As he stood over them, with Erica on the floor after attempting to kiss him, he instinctively had recoiled away from her, her bold moves reminiscent of Kate Argent’s uninvited touch which made it even more repellent now that he thought about it. It was time to re-focus Erica on someone else. 

“Erica,” he called and waited for the petulant teenager to meet his gaze. “I need you to get close to Stilinski.” When he saw the subtle shift in her demeanor he knew he’d made the right decision especially given her previous willingness to track the boy. “I want to know everything they know about the kanima and Jackson.”

“What about us?” Boyd questioned as he rose to his feet, blindly giving a hand to Isaac to help him up.

“Yeah, what can we do?” Isaac chimed in with a nod to Boyd as he clutched his once broken wrist.

“You can go to school. I think Erica can handle this one on her own. Can’t you?” Derek said as his warm forresty eyes settled on Erica with a raised brow.

“Of course I can.” Erica grinned wolfishly as she slowly rose to her feet. 

“Good, I want a full report after schools out.” Derek gave a quick nod in agreement shifting his gaze to his other betas. “Boyd, Isaac I expect to see you here for training after school’s out. And don’t be late tomorrow.” He turned then and retreated into his subway car. 

The three Betas stood and stared at each other for a moment having a silent conversation. A few days before Isaac had told them that the new guidance counselor smelled like pack, both Erica and Boyd had found reasons to go by her office. For whatever reason, they said she smelled human to them and only human. But, they all agreed that Derek’s scent was altering, a little more each day. Then, Isaac had shared that on the last few nights, when he had not been sleeping at his house that Derek had not been sleeping in the train depot. He’d appear early the next morning with a slightly altered scent and smelling vaguely of a citrus perfume which Isaac knew the guidance counselor wore.

Erica raised her brow and inclined her head, indicating that Isaac should talk to Derek. Isaac’s eyes went wide shaking his head and gesturing as to why she didn’t ask him. She mouthed, “are you kidding?” with a firm shake of her head “no f-ing way”. They stared at each other momentarily before turning their heads identically to Boyd indicating that he should ask. 

The taller boy didn’t comment or gesture just simply looked at the two other betas and he walked away, heading up the stairs. He wanted absolutely no parts in asking Derek who he spent his nights with. It wasn’t his business who his Alpha was sleeping with as far as he was concerned, if he needed to know Derek would tell him.

Erica crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head again mouthing silently, “I’m not doing it.” Then, she turned and headed out of the train depot following after Boyd. She only needed to get smacked down by Derek once to learn her lesson. She was definitely not asking him if he was sleeping with the guidance counselor.

Isaac withheld a sigh as he rolled his eyes watching his pack mates rush out of the train depot. Taking a deep breath, he rounded his shoulders and headed into the subway car.

Derek heard the hesitant gait of Isaac’s walk as he entered the train car. “What is it Isaac?” He asked without turning around looking at the papers strewn around on his makeshift desk.

“I gave those papers to Ms. Morrell like you told me to.”

“Good, then everything is taken care of,” he turned then expecting Isaac to take his leave. When the beta made no moves to leave, he merely raised a brow in question. “What?”

“I-I forgot to get an excuse note from her when I saw her so I had to go back the next day.” Isaac paused as he nervously rubbed his hands against his pants. 

Derek frowned as he scented the slight undercurrent of fear coming from Isaac. “And?”

“Her scent is different,” he rushed out. “At first, I thought it was me … but I-I saw her again today and her scent reminds me of yours, like she’s pack. Is she our pack Derek?”

Derek couldn’t hide his surprise that Isaac could distinguish the scent their bond on her especially since she was shielded. Scott, for as advanced as he was a Beta, still hadn’t worked out the subtle nuances in scents. He wasn’t even able to detect that fact that he had Allison all over him and vice versa when they weren’t even supposed to be dating. He considered how to answer Isaac’s question because he knew that eventually Genevieve would take her place in among them when the bond wasn’t shielded and pack would feel the connection to her as they did him. “Does anyone else know?”

Isaac shook his head slowly. “Erica and Boyd said that she’s smells human to them. They didn’t scent any pack on her.” What he didn’t add was that while they didn’t scent pack on her, they did smell her citrusy perfume and his altering scent everyday with just a hint on citrus on him.

“She’s human but don’t tell anyone else about the scent changing for now.”

Isaac instantly felt his weariness fade away as he realized that Derek wasn’t upset with the news, merely surprised. It almost seemed like he expected it. As he turned to leave the train car, he realized that Derek had not denied that Ms. Morrell was pack. Walking the steps of the warehouse he wondered what it meant if Ms. Morrell’s scent was altering and she was pack.

*

The next morning, Isaac and Boyd followed Derek’s instructions and reported to school promptly. He also hadn’t said a word to either of his pack mates about Ms. Morrell and Derek. Instead, he decided to do some investigating on his own, which was why he was spending his free period outside of her office waiting to see her again. He’d noted when he’d sat down that she had Lydia Martin in there again. He briefly wondered why he couldn’t hear any of their conversation, which was odd to say the least.

“Mr. Lahey, I don’t believe you have an appointment with Ms. Morrell today. Is there something I can help you with?” Gerard Argent asked as he entered the guidance office to see one of Derek Hale’s betas.

Isaac immediately shot to his feet lifting his bag with his free hand remembering Derek’s warnings about the older man. “No, I had a question I wanted to ask her about something we talked about before. But, she has someone in there.”

“I can see that. But, I think it be best if you go ahead back to your class. After all, you don’t want to spend your afternoon in detention with me.”

“No,” Isaac said with a firm shake of his head and left the office without a backward glance. 

Gerard watched him leave and popped another pill into his mouth. When he was sure that the Beta was gone, he ambled over to the Ms. Morrell’s office and peered in curious to see what had captured the Beta’s attention. Once he saw that it was just that the Martin girl he turned and left. Now, that he knew she wasn’t the kanima, her apparent immunity to the bite mattered little to him. She could be of no use to his purpose.

Oblivious the comings and goings outside her office, Genevieve was focused on Lydia and her apparent lack of interest in their current session. The bright redhead was very well put together on the outside but on the inside was there something different and Genevieve had barely scratched the surface when it came to finding the real Lydia Martin.

“You know Lydia this is technically our last scheduled appointment. But, we could continue to meet if you need to.”

“No offense but why would I need to do that? I don’t need any help, I’m fine.” Lydia replied as she stared down at her nails in boredom. “I’ve passed all your little tests haven’t I?”

“They weren’t tests and there really isn’t a way of passing or failing inkblots.”

Lydia glanced up with her astute brown eyes widely expressive. “And yet, you found it appropriate to waste my time showing them to me. Where did you get your degree again?”

Genevieve smiled as she held back a sigh. “Lydia, if you don’t think that there is anything else that I can help you with then you can leave. I’d hate to waste your time.”

“Good,” Lydia said as she moved to stand in her white mini dress.

“Lydia,” Genevieve called as the girl reached for the doorknob. “If there is ever anything that you need to talk about, anything … my door is always open.”

“Of course,” Lydia mocked warmly and left without a word. 

Genevieve walked to the door and watched her leave the guidance office. She couldn’t reach her. With everything else going on with the kanima and Derek, she didn’t know what she could do to finally get pass the teenager’s barriers. She only hoped that she wasn’t too late, and that she could save Lydia like someone had saved her years before.

Glancing down at her watch, she saw that it was lunch time. She returned to her office grabbing her car keys and headed out of the building. As she walked, still pondering on her situation she climbed into her green mid-size SUV and drove to the Animal Clinic. It was any wonder that she did not notice the young man who followed her on his bike. 

*

Deaton sat on the edge of his desk watching as Genevieve paced the floor of his office.

“I’ve tried and tried to get to her, but she so closed off.”

“Well, keep trying we don’t know that anything is wrong. It could be that nothing has happened.”

Genevieve paused as she thought about all her previous interactions with the teenager. “I don’t know, she’s … prickly at best. And we know that she was getting visions it’s why she left the hospital the way she did. If he found a way in … appealed to her on some level—”

“We don’t know anything for certain, yet. We still have time to reach her.”

“Do we really? I’ve seen those kids, Alan. There is so much going on and Lydia is just in the mix because she doesn’t know anything. And the longer she is in the dark by herself the more vulnerable she is to him.”

Deaton considered Peter Hale and everything he remembered about the man and who he’d been before the fire have ravished his soul. “Peter would have had to put a lot into play to ensure his resurrection but not without a cost. What do your instincts tell you?”

“Lydia is dancing close to the edge, all she needs is a push and she’ll go over without a fight.”

“Then, we need to be prepared for her fall and ground her when she does.”

Genevieve snorted with a nod pinching the bridge of her nose. “Don’t you get tired of this?”

“Of what?”

“Of waiting for the worse to happen and dealing with the aftermath when we could just stop it from happening—”

“And take away their free will in doing so. We are bound to serve, protect, and advise. But, we cannot stop a sequence of events put in motion any more than we can control the weather.”

“But, is it really free will if they don’t have all the facts? I don’t think so because all we are doing is settling them up for failure.”

“Your view is too narrow. You assume that having more information will change the inevitable outcome. Sometimes, things happen because they are meant to and no amount of information will change that.” Deaton replied quietly knowing that it wasn’t response that she wanted. But, he and Genevieve were firmly on an ideological divide. She believed that those involved in the supernatural community had a responsibility not to be simply reactionary but actively involved partially because of her own experiences. She had been reprimanded before but all of her previous posts had valued her guidance and advice so it didn’t stick. This would likely be her last post after she and Derek had settled their bond completely.

“I’m well aware of that. But, I know I’m right and so do you. You and I both know what’s coming and the kanima is a distraction. I just don’t want this to backfire because no one is prepared when the Alphas come.”

“And they won’t be, as long as we are here to prepare for it.” Deaton rose to his feet as he watched her grab her purse to head out of his office. “Genevieve, I know that it’s not what you want, but we all have our roles to play. And when the time comes you’ll know you’ve made the right decision.” 

Genevieve paused in the doorway. “I disagree but that’s not going to change. We aren’t helping anyone by keeping them in dark when they need to see the light.”

“Then, I guess we’ll agree to disagree.”

“Yes, we will.” Genevieve agreed. Without another word to her one-time mentor she returned to her car to head back to the school. As she sat in her parking lot contemplating her conversation with Deaton she realized that in some ways, many ways Deaton was right they weren’t gods, they couldn’t stop bad things from happening. But, she knew that she was right as well, the more information people had the better able they would be to make decisions, the _right_ decisions. 

And right now, she couldn’t reach out to Lydia and tell her that whatever was going on with her wasn’t real or that Peter Hale was using her. She and Deaton were bound by certain rules and there were many limitations on the kind of influence they could provide. 

But, her bond was not restricted by those limitations and she could ensure that it was strong enough to withstand anything even a relative coming back from the dead. She pulled out cell phone and dialed a number that had only been in her phone for the last week. It only rang once before he picked up.

“Genevieve, what’s wrong?” Derek answered surprised to see her number on his cell phone. It was the first time she had ever used it.

“Nothing, I was wondering if you had any plans for tonight.”

“Not really, why?” Truly the only thing he had scheduled was more training with Isaac and Boyd until Erica returned with confirmation that the kanima was Jackson.

“Would you like to have dinner with me?”

“What, like a date?”

“Not a date – just dinner, I could cook—,”

“I’ll cook.” Derek said as he surprised himself with the offer. He and Laura had never starved but between the two of them his sister had been the better cook. There were only three meals he could make with any confidence, spaghetti, scrambled eggs, and steak and potatoes. 

“Uh-sure, so do you want me to meet at your place or…?”

“I’ll come to yours with everything.”

“Okay, then I guess I’ll see you then.

“I’ll see you then.” Derek hung up.

Genevieve stared at the phone in her hand in surprise. That certainly hadn’t been gone the way she’d it to but it had worked out better than she expected.

*

Derek had shown up at her house promptly at five o’clock with groceries and had gone into her kitchen to beginning cooking. Since he had a craving for red meat he had settled on grilling some steaks with a potatoes and a salad. He had chopped all the ingredients for the salad and placed them in glass bowl in the refrigerator while he cooked the potatoes. 

After Genevieve had let him into her house, she’d left the cooking him so she could change out of her work clothes into something more comfortable. Not wanting it to feel like a date, she changed out of her dress into a pair of black skinny jeans with a red sleeveless shirt and black ballet flats. She’d pulled her hair into a low bun pinning it in place with few pins. 

When she returned to the kitchen Derek was standing over the grill. She took a moment to take in the picture that she was presented with the impressive view of Derek cooking in her kitchen. He was wearing, what she considered his standard uniform of jeans and a Henley with the sleeves rolled up. As she couldn’t help but the look intently at the way the jeans were molded to his powerful thighs and butt, she realized that Derek Hale was a very attractive man. And those shoulders … he was hot with a capital H.

“How do you want it?” Derek asked as he turned to see her leering at him. 

“Huh? What?” Genevieve asked confused as her eyes shot up to Derek’s questioning ones.

“The steak, how do you want it?” He asked with an arched brow as he held back the smirk that he could feel coming as he realized that she had been checking him out.

“Um, medium rare, I mean well medium well.” She moved to stand beside him as he placed the steaks on the grill. “Did you marinate them?”

“Yes,” he replied as he shifted to lean back against her counter as she leaned down to take in the scent of the sizzling steak.

“It smells good.” Genevieve said as she moved back to stand against the other counter. “I didn’t realize you could cook.”

“That’s not exactly surprising given that we never really talked about this kind of stuff before.”

“No, I suppose not.” She watched for several minutes as he went back to cooking the steaks before deciding that leering at Derek while he was cooking wasn’t conducive to her plans, she needed to get her mind out of the gutter. So she decided to do something more productive with her time and went to set the table in the dining room. She was placing the glasses filled half way with ice on the table when Derek popped up with the food. “What would you like to drink?”

“I’ll just take water.”

“Sure? I have iced tea and soda?”

“Yeah, water’s fine.” With a nod Genevieve poured water from the glass canister and took her seat across the table from him. After a quick grace they ate in silence. Derek finished before her and was content watching her eat her fill until she pushed her plate away.

“Well, that was delicious. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” For the next few minutes they said nothing. 

Unable to deal with the uncomfortable silence Genevieve began to clear the table. Derek offered to help but was kindly rebuffed. She had taken the last dish into her kitchen and put it in her dishwasher. She returned to the living room to see Derek standing by her mantle. He turned when he felt her enter the living room. They both spoke at the same time.

“This is awkward—,”

“Why did you ask me to dinner?” 

Derek snorted in amusement and gestured for her to continue with a raised brow.

Genevieve rolled her eyes with a sigh as she walked toward him. “Have you ever noticed how unless we’re arguing there’s this awkward…" she gestured with her hands. “Vibe for lack of a better word between us. We used to talk and we were, well I thought we were friends before.” She crossed her arms over her chest as she stared wearily.

“We were,” he said nodding quietly in agreement as he peered down at her with his green eyes warmly holding hers.

“That’s why I asked you to dinner tonight. I want that back, that ease we had with each other.” Genevieve said searching for any hint that she could find to tell her he felt the same way that she did.

“We can get it back. But, it can’t be what it was before.” He moved from the mantle to perch himself on the back of the sofa in front of her. 

“Why not?”

“Come here,” he said huskily beckoning her closer until she stood between less than a foot away from him. He reached for her hand, unraveling her arms as he pulled her closer still. “We were more than that before, and we can’t go back now that the bond is active because it demands more.”

“How much more?”

“As much as it needs,” he slipped his hand from hers to slide it to the small of her back to pull her into his chest until there were mere inches between them. He gazed at her noting her sharp intake of her breath as he trialed his hand down her spine. “There’s a certain amount of intimacy that a simple touch can provide but it’s not enough.”

Derek shifted moving to caress her jaw, tipping her head up slightly as he gazed hungrily at her lips. Unable to help himself he brushed his lips over hers once gently. When she didn’t pull away he settled his hands at the small of her back and drew her body into his so that their chests met as he took her mouth hungrily as he wanted to on the dance floor the night before.

Genevieve responded immediately sliding her hands up his shoulders and delving her fingers into his hair as she opened her mouth under his allowing his tongue to sweep into her mouth and tangle with hers to the chiming of bells in her ears. It occurred to her later that the chimes had obviously come from Derek’s cell phone which broke through the haze of their kiss, as she propped her hands on his shoulders and pushed herself away from breathing deeply. “That’s your phone, you should take it.”

He stood up pulling the phone from his back pocket and answering it without taking his eyes from hers, a hand caressing the small of her back. “What?”

“Derek, it’s Erica, the kanima did something and she went into a seizure, what do we do?” Scott asked hurriedly but he could hear Stiles in the background.

“Bring her to me.” Derek hung up the phone. “Erica’s hurt. I’ve got to go.”

“Right, I understand you need to take care of your pack.” She said quietly stepping back. 

Derek pulled her back to him, taking her mouth again one last time before pulling away. “I’ll see myself out. Make sure to lock up behind me.” 

Genevieve had barely gathered her breath back when Derek got moving then knowing he wanted to be there before Scott got to the warehouse. He walked to the front door and took off at full speed after hearing the lock click behind him.

*

Derek leaned against the doorway of the train car watching as Stiles helped Erica to stand up talking to her, as she wasn’t completely healed yet. The kanima situation was clearly getting out of hand, he was thankful that Scott had finally managed to see reason enough to understand that they needed to deal with Jackson as a team to resolve the kanima problem. 

“You’ll take her home?” 

“Yeah, Stiles and I can sure she gets home okay.” Scott said as he watched Stiles walk Erica upstairs. I’ll call you tomorrow so can figure out what to do.”

Derek nodded in agreement. “Sure.”

“Okay.” Scott said before he left following behind Stiles and Erica to the jeep.

Derek waited, watching until they pulled off before he walked to his Camaro and drove back to Genevieve’s house. He parked the car in her drive way and walked the short distance to her porch. Once again she opened the door before he even had a chance to knock. 

“How did you know that I was here?”

“The bond,” she replied with a shrug turning expecting Derek to follow her into the living room. “I just know that you’re here.” In the few hours that he had been gone she had showered and changed into short sleeveless grey nightgown that ended mid-thigh with its accompanying grey robe. She had been reading or rather attempting to read a magazine on the sofa waiting for him to return. “How’s Erica?”

“She’s fine.” He followed Genevieve to the living room. Watching as she settled back on the sofa with tucking her legs under before moving to sit down beside her with a sigh as he stretched his long legs out and rested his head back on the sofa. “The kanima … Jackson is out of control. He attacked Scott, Stiles and Erica at the school today during detention. He caused her to have a seizure.”

“How out of control?”

Derek tilted his head to look at her. “What do you mean?” 

“You said the kanima is out of control, does that mean Jackson knows that he’s the kanima and is picking random people off?”

“They said that the message he wrote makes it pretty clear that someone is controlling him, telling him who to kill. But, whether he knows about the danger he poses, your guess is as good as mine.”

“So what are you going to do?” 

“Don’t know. Scott and I are going to talk and try to figure out a plan tomorrow.” Derek rubbed his hands over his face tiredly. It had been a long day.

Genevieve rose to her feet. “Come on,” she grabbed his arm pulling him up behind her. “Let’s go to bed.”

Derek nodded allowing her to pull him along behind leaving kanima and all those issues between them for another day.


	8. Chapter Seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Although, I know the events of the rave take place in the next day or two after Jackson attacked everyone at the school for the purpose of this story we’re going I’m pushing the time back a little ….

**Chapter Seven**

It had been a two weeks since the last kanima attack. In that time, Derek had altered his training schedule with Betas. He worked with them in the mornings and after school when they didn’t have practice. But, the nights he spent with Genevieve.

He was fairly certain that all three of them knew about her, but the only one to approach him thus far had been Isaac. Neither Erica nor Boyd had said a word about her and he had no intention of bringing her into the pack’s common knowledge until the danger of the kanima was taken care of. 

To that end, he’d also managed to encourage her to begin training with him and to his surprise his mate was pretty spry. They worked out after hours in a local gym that Derek had access to, like much of their relationship, she never asked how he got the keys and he never volunteered the information. 

The first night of training, he’d gone easy on her, suggesting that they workout with mats on the floor so he wouldn’t hurt her. She had taken him down in less than ten minutes. 

As she helped him to his feet, she warned him that if he wanted to train with her then it needed to full force, no holding back because he wasn’t doing her any favors. Any other wolf wouldn’t hold back on her in a fight. 

She held her own, but even Genevieve knew that she could never truly expect to win a fight with him. So she fought dirty using any and every weapon at her disposal to take him down. In the week they’d been training together excluding that first fight she had taken him down twice more and every single time Derek gained more respect for her and her skills.

A side effect of spending so much time together was that they were more aware of each other both physically and through the bond. And the ease that Genevieve thought was missing was slowly beginning to seep back in. Before, she’d been hesitant to touch him even when he was asleep. But, now she did it unconsciously running her hand across his back, shoulders, arms … almost without thought. 

After the kanima’s last attack at the school she’d left him a key to her place on the pillow after she’d left for her morning workout with Jacqueline. It was a key he very rarely had to use given that she always sensed when he was near and usually opened the door before he could even use it. 

Derek was surprised as he walked the few blocks away from his parked Camaro that he’d had to use the key to get into her house. He knew she was home and instinctively walked through the house to her bedroom. He pushed open the door to find her dressed in yoga pants that ended just above her calves with a tight stretchy t-shirt that barely covered her stomach pulling on her sneakers. 

“Hey, I thought we weren’t seeing each other tonight?” 

Derek’s brows rose in surprise. “We weren’t, I have that thing with Scott. You’re going out?”

“Yes,” she said with a smile as she stood and turned to her dresser to pluck up the hair band that she’d left there earlier and pulled her hair into a high ponytail. “But, don’t worry about me I’ll be in a group.” 

“I know you can take care of yourself, but that doesn’t make me feel any better about you going out without me. The kanima could be waiting to attack you when you least expect it, or did you forget about how your girls night out ended?”

“Hardly, Derek,” she answered wryly. “But, the kanima is obviously more discerning than you think; the last three attacks were for specific people. And I hardly think a new high school guidance counselor would be on someone’s hit list.” She turned patting his chest she left her bedroom with Derek on her heels. “Shouldn’t you be headed to your meeting?”

“I will, I was heading there, but I wanted to see you first.” Derek replied as he followed her down the stairs and the hallway into the kitchen.

“You wanted to see me? About what?” Genevieve asked as she opened her refrigerator and pulled out a chilled bottle of water and then left the kitchen. 

“I-,” Derek paused thinking of what he wanted to tell her about her scent, specifically that it was becoming more like his. That soon his betas would recognize and respond to her as his mate and as an Alpha and not just a member of their pack. He wanted to know if she was ready for that and all the things that would follow when he recognized her as his mate. But, he couldn’t ask her any of those things yet, for as much as he wanted to; the kanima had to be dealt with first and that is what he would focus on. “I’m meeting with Scott and the vet we’re going to find a way to trap the kanima.”

Genevieve who had been absentmindedly placing her yoga mat in its case popped her head up. “How?”

Derek shrugged. “Not sure, but Scott believes the vet can help so I’m willing to try because we need to put it down.”

“Put it down,” she repeated. “You can’t mean to kill it?”

“I’ll do whatever I have to do. And if killing it is the only way to stop it then so be it.”

“Derek,” she paused dropping the mat on the sofa as she went to him grabbing his hand and squeezing in support. “I’ll support you in whatever you think is best to do. But, if you can save him, Jackson, find a way to do it.” She didn’t add that she didn’t think Derek could deal with anymore death on his conscious knowing that he still blamed himself for his family’s death.

“I will,” Derek pressed a kiss on Genevieve’s forehead. “See you later?” 

“Yeah, I’ll be here.” With one last squeeze, Genevieve released his hand to let him leave the house.

*

The next day went by with little drama or fanfare much to Genevieve’s relief. She had not spoken to Derek since the night before. He had told her that the plan was to trap the Master and with him the kanima. She had expressed her reservations but had reasoned that since Derek wanted her to stay out of it that she would. As her mother had always told her when dealing with men, it was always wise to pick your battles.

Determined not to stay in the house spending the night worrying about Derek or his pack while they were trying to track the kanima, she’d invited Jacqueline and her husband out to dinner at the Tapas restaurant in San Francisco. She’d dressed casually for the evening in a pair of black slacks paired with black cowl neck sweater.

Genevieve was putting on her favorite mauve-colored lipstick with the phone rang. She pressed the button for the speaker phone assuming that it was Jacqueline. “Hey, Jacs I’ll be leaving in about five minutes.”

“I sincerely hope that Jacs is a woman because my daughter would know better than to rouse the possessiveness of her bonded mate by hanging around with another male.”

“Yes, your daughter does know better. _Jacqueline_ is a good friend who I am having dinner with tonight. How are you Mother?”

“Oh, me I’m fine. It’s been nearly a month since we last spoke and I was concerned–,”

“No, you weren’t.” Genevieve snorted with a laugh as she slid the tube of lipstick into her clutch purse. “If you were really concerned you would be at my front door and not on the phone. Why are you really calling?”

“I wanted to hear about the bond. Is it complete?”

“If you mean, have I been bitten yet. The answer is no. Derek and I are taking things slow; getting used to bond and each other.”

“That’s probably a wise decision. But, you haven’t much time before they come.”

Genevieve sat on the bench in front of her bed as she slid her feet into her black booties. “Much time before who comes Mother?”

“The Alpha Pack.”

Immediately, Genevieve took the phone off speaking being the phone to her ear. “What do you know about the Alpha Pack?”

“My sources tell me that Alpha Pack is making its way to Beacon Hills and that Deucalion wants to absorb the Hales into their pack.”

“Why? Alan told me before that when their family died and Laura became an Alpha that Deucalion hailed her then as well. But, the death of their family made her strong enough to reject the offer. Why come after Derek now? Why not when Laura died and he didn’t have a pack?”

“I don’t know. And you know Deucalion he doesn’t share his motives. If I had to wager a guess, it could be that they were hedging their bets. After all the Hales were an old pack of natural born wolves which made them far stronger than any made pack could ever be. The Hales have probably been on his radar for years.”

“This doesn’t make any sense. There has to be something we’re missing. How did you find out?”

“Genevieve, really you’re an advisor. You know I take my job very seriously and I make it a point to be aware of potential threats,” her mother admonished gently.

“Yes, of course. I merely meant that I didn’t expect Deucalion to be on your radar. Or for the Alpha Pack to show an interest in this territory, particularly since there is a heavy hunter presence here.”

“Well, one doesn’t become an Alpha Pack by fearing the mere presence of hunters. Not to mention we’ve all heard about the kanima in Beacon Hills. They take that as a sign a weakness for the reigning Alpha and if they arrive before the situation has been resolved then I trust I don’t need to tell you what will happen.”

“No,” Genevieve sighed. “No, you don’t and I agree with you. Derek is trying to get a handle on the kanima situation. It’s just … not as easy as he hoped. But, there is another problem on top of that, one that I don’t think he’s aware of. There’s a girl who was bitten by Peter Hale but survived without turning. She’s immune to the bite and you know that’s a bad omen.”

“This is true, what did Alan have to say?”

“Alan says we have to let natural events run their course. He thinks we should not interfere. But, he doesn’t understand what’s happening like I do. He refuses to see the signs that are there.”

“Genevieve, you know that Alan is a bound by a code of honor not engage or interfere in the natural order of things. No matter how much you want to help, once you cross that line it can never be uncrossed. The more involved you become, the more danger you place yourself and your charges under. Once you become a part of this world, there is no going back. That’s why it must be their choice based on what they know.”

“I know that Mother. But, with the kanima and the Alphas coming I feel like I’ve already lost her.”

“You don’t know that. Don’t borrow trouble if there is none!”

“Yet,” Genevieve added quietly. “There isn’t any trouble yet.”

“And _if_ something should happen then there is no one more qualified or experienced to handle it than you. Trust in yourself and your abilities, my dear, and they will not fail you.”

“Thanks Mom.”

“You’re very welcome, love. Keep me posted on your bond.”

“I will.”

“I love you, darling.”

“And I you.” Genevieve replied as she hung up the phone. She contemplated calling Jacs and cancelling their dinner. Ultimately, she decided to stick with her plans needing something to take her mind off of all of the problems that she had swirling around in her head at the moment. She grabbed her clutch, car keys and cell phone and left her bedroom.

*

Stiles was nervous as he sat tapping the steering wheel of his Jeep waiting for everyone to get settled. The night had clearly not gone as planned, the kanima, Jackson, had claimed another victim, they still didn’t know who the kanima’s master was, and on top of all that Scott was injured. 

“Is he going to be okay?” He asked pulling onto the road unable to stop himself from glancing at his best friend sprawled across the laps of Erica and Isaac in the back seat. “He doesn’t look okay.”

“Just get us to the vet. He’ll be fine.” Derek replied with calmly.

“Okay, but what then? What if the Argents come after us? Come after you?” Stiles asked unable to stop himself.

“The Argents won’t be coming after anyone tonight. Now, stop asking questions and get us to the clinic!” Derek growled.

Stiles glared at the Alpha in his passenger seat but wisely kept his mouth shut. Obviously, now was not the time to question Derek. So he focused on driving to the clinic legally as fast as possible. It just wouldn’t do to be pulled over by a deputy right now, especially with his dad suspended. There was no way he could explain this. Still though his curiosity was piqued when Derek began speaking into a cell phone.

“Hey, where are you? No, it didn’t go well I need you to see you. Can you meet me at Deaton’s office? I’ll be waiting.” Derek ended the call and slipped the cell phone back in his pocket as he stared at the passing scenery.

“So is Boyd going to be waiting with your car?” Stiles finally asked unable to take the silence. So focused on driving he didn’t notice that Erica and Isaac shared a look in the back seat.

“What?” Derek asked confused as he shifted his gaze from the window to Stiles who pulled into the parking lot of clinic. The Jeep had barely screeched to a stop before Derek climbed out. He jerked the door open and pulled Scott out of back seat into a fireman hold over his shoulders. “Stiles I want you to take them home.”

“Uh, I’m not a cab service.” Stiles stood up over the other side of his car arms up as he protested. “Besides, what about Scott? How do you plan to get him home without a car?”

“And I’m not leaving you here unprotected.” Isaac added as he slid out of the car leaving Erica sighing in the backseat.

“Fine, I don’t have time to argue with you, Isaac with me. Stiles take Erica home.” The door to the clinic opened with Deaton waiting Derek moved toward the vet carrying Scott. “Where should I put him?” 

“Lay him down on the table in the back,” Deaton replied as he held the door open for Derek and followed the younger man back inside to the only exam room with a light on. Isaac followed without another word leaving Erica and Stiles remaining outside.

Erica climbed from the backseat into the passenger seat and waited for Stiles to get back in and start the car. 

Stiles swore then backed out of his spot and got back on the road noticing a green mid-size pass him on the road.

“So Derek got a new car?”

“Nope,” Erica said popping her ps.

“Then who was that driving the SUV that was entering the parking lot as we were leaving. Well unless Boyd changed genders in the last few hours and dropped a few inches that obviously wasn’t him.”

“It wasn’t Boyd,” Erica confirmed with an indelicate snort they told Stiles that she knew far more than she was telling. 

“So does Derek have a girlfriend or a friend whose a girl?” When Erica didn’t respond, he took her silence for confirmation. “ _Seriously_ , Derek has a girlfriend? Wow, does Scott know? Wait do you know who she is?”

“Maybe but I’m not telling. And what’s with all the questions?”

“Can’t I be a little surprised that he has a girlfriend? I mean just look at him he’s all gruff and growly like 95 percent of the time I see him—,”

“I have looked at him, he’s hot. Did you ever consider that it might be you?”

“Hey, he’s also kind of a dick. So maybe I can’t see any girl going for that.”

“Yeah, then how to you explain Jackson. I mean kanima issue aside half the girls in our school would jump him if they weren’t scared of Lydia.”

“Point taken,” Stiles replied quietly making a mental note to question Scott about this new revelation later.

*

Genevieve parked her car and got out to meet Derek who stood waiting for her just outside the clinic along the brick wall in front of a handicap parking space. She did a quick survey of his appearance taking in the cut that hadn’t healed on his arm. 

“I thought you said weren’t hurt,” she said as she slid keys into the pocket of her jacket as Derek enclosed her in his arms for a moment breathing her scent.

Just being near his mate calmed him, allowing the adrenaline racing through his veins to settle. He’d been on action mode since he’d been cornered by Chris Argent and then on high powered urgency when he’d heard Scott’s call. She pushed out of his arms to examine his arm. 

“Have you been drinking?” Derek asked suddenly smelling the tangy scent of alcohol on her, surprising Genevieve who lifted her head from examining his cut.

“I had a couple of drinks with dinner. But, that was couple hours ago, I’m not drunk, Derek.”

Derek leaned back against the wall of the clinic and pinching the bridge of his nose with his free hand. “I know … I just I’m on the edge. We didn’t capture it and he killed someone else tonight. And we still have no idea who’s controlling it.”

Genevieve turned into him, leaning in taking his hand down as she soothed the furrowed brow at his temple. She slid her hand back into his hair as she leaned up further to press a kiss to his temple. “It’s okay, we’ll figure out what to do. Let me fix this first,” she said putting both hands on his uninjured arm pulling with a gentle tug to lead him into the clinic behind her. 

She led him into another exam room that flicked the light switch on and left him standing by a steel table as she began searching through the cabinets for supplies. 

Gathering the materials she needed dropped them on the steel table then washed and dried her hands before she examined his wound again. “Why isn’t it healing?”

“I was cut with knife laced with some sort of wolfsbane solution.”

“How?” She asked as she began to clean his wound. “I thought you were supposed to be in the club. And I’m assuming that since you’re still standing this isn’t from a fight with the kanima.”

For a few moments he said nothing, just observed her quick, efficient actions as she cleaned the wound and then wrapped a bandage over it. “It’s from the Argents. I never actually saw the kanima or Jackson for that matter, tonight. It was a bust all around. Turns out that in the kanima form it can’t be wounded or killed and Jackson or his master had enough sense to call on the kanima when they got him down. Oh, and according to Stiles the kanima’s master seems to believe that he was murdered.”

“ _Murdered_? I assume you mean a metaphysical death as opposed to a real one.”

“ Yeah, I not too sure on the details.” Derek shrugged as crossed his arms over his chest to lean back against the table. “But we have a bigger problem.”

“What?” Genevieve asked placing her hand on Derek’s forearm.

“Allison’s mother tried to kill Scott tonight.”

“”You’re kidding?” Derek frowned shaking his head. “I knew Gerard wasn’t exactly sane but I thought Victoria was … well as normal as any Argent can be. Is Scott okay?”

“He’s fine but it’s Victoria Argent that I’m more considered about.”

“Why?” She asked as she shifted to pick up the used medical supplies and drop it in the trash.

“When Scott called, I could tell that he was dying … I got him out but I bit her-,”

Genevieve’s eyes widen in surprise. “You bit Victoria Argent. So she’s dying-,”

“Or transitioning,” Derek suggested quietly.

“She won’t transition. Hunters, especially ones as militant as the Argents, live by a strict code of honor. She can’t become what she hunts; it would go against everything she believes in.” 

“How do you know-,” Derek started only to be interrupted by a knock on the door before Deaton opened the door. His face did not give away any surprise at seeing Genevieve. 

“Derek, Scott is stable if you would like to see him.”

Derek glanced at Genevieve who gave a small nod before responding. “Yeah, I’d like to see him.”

Deaton nodded then stepped back to let him pass. Before he could move to follow him, Genevieve grabbed his arm stopping him as she leaned in close to the other man. “I had a rather interesting chat with my mother today.”

Deaton glanced at the hand that she held on his arm and then inclined his head in the direction of the other room. “Now, is not the time for this discussion.” He shook off her hand and moved to follow Derek.

Genevieve swore softly under her breath as she walked to the waiting room and sat down in the chair facing the doorway. Alan had been spent the better part of two weeks lecturing her on her duties. Warning her that they would change once she and Derek had sealed her bond. It was for that exact reason that she never revealed that the bond had been sealed weeks ago. And now that she knew the Alpha Pack was coming she was questioning his motives. He had known for weeks about the Alphas and how close there were but he’d said nothing. 

“I can’t decide if I admire your sentimentality or despise it.” She said as Deaton appeared in her peripheral vision.

“If I wanted your opinion, I’d make an appointment in the guidance office.”

“From the state of things, I think you could use a little guidance. Are you _really_ going to leave this up to a couple of kids?”

“Those _kids_ are more capable than you think.”

Genevieve shook her head looking away from her mentor. “Then are you going to tell them what’s coming?”

Deaton glanced toward the backroom before answering, “They’ve got enough to worry about.”

Genevieve rose to her feet with a sigh and moved to duck behind the counter pausing briefly in front of him. “Don’t be surprised when this comes back to bite you in the ass. Leaving them in the dark is a mistake,” she warned quietly before brushing pass him to go to the exam room. 

She walked in the doorway expecting Derek to be alone with Scott and surprised to see Isaac sitting in the corner opposite Derek.

*

Isaac pondered the latest series of events that occurred that night as he waited for Scott to awaken. When he’d told Derek he wanted to stay, part of the reason was to be there to help him if the Argents attacked. And the other part of him was there for Scott. 

After so many years with just him and his father, who wasn’t the most caring man in the last few years, he forgot what it was like having people care about him. For some reason Scott cared about him, even made an effort to make sure he was careful and it reminded him so much of the feeling he used to have before Cameron had died and everything fell apart at home. He stared at Scott’s rising chest listening intently to the other Beta’s heartbeat oblivious to Derek returning to the room. 

But, the moment the subtle smell of a citris perfume entered the room, his pulled his gaze away from Scott to see Derek and Ms. Morrell across from him in corner of the room. He just watched them as they watched over Scott. He’d known of course that there was something going on between them for weeks and then when Derek called her from Stiles’ car it confirmed his suspicions. As far as he knew, Derek never mentioned her to Scott or his other pack mates. 

He silently observed them across the room, watching as she leaned against the wall close to Derek with her hand resting on his shoulder. To most people it might not seem like much but then they didn’t know Derek. They wouldn’t see how his body relaxed at the mere touch of her hand releasing the rigid tension that Derek always held. They wouldn’t notice that the lines of guilt that had been etched on his forehead since the left the rave had disappeared once Ms. Morrell had arrived. No, most people wouldn’t notice these things but he did and that made Isaac realize that whatever relationship the guidance counselor had with his Alpha, it important to Derek. So much so that he made certain that few people knew of their connection. 

He continued to watch as Ms. Morrell leaned down and said something to Derek that he couldn’t hear which was odd. Whatever she said apparently surprised Derek as well since he looked up at with a raised brow. She nodded and pushed off from the wall. Derek rose as well towering slightly over her as he took her hand and pulled her into his arms and peculiar scent came over the room. He closed his eyes to hone on it and realized that it was a variation of Derek’s scent with a citrus overlay … it was pack. 

His eyes flashed open in time to see Ms. Morrell pushed away from Derek as the Alpha directed his gaze at him expectantly. Isaac froze as he sat up anxiously glancing at Ms. Morrell who stood in front of Derek gangling her keys in hand. 

“Isaac I’m going to take you home.” She was saying to him to which his eyes immediately flashed back to Derek. At the rise of his Alpha’s brow, he chambered to his feet.

“Uh, sure,” he said as he started out of the room. He stopped at the doorway when he realized that he didn’t know where he was going to turn back to see Ms. Morrell grabbed at Derek’s Henley to pull him down and press a quick kiss against his lips. Then, she released her hold on Derek and pushed him back to his seat before turning and walking toward the doorway. 

Isaac stepped away from the door looking anywhere but at Derek. Before awkwardly gesturing that he would be with her. Then he all but jumped to follow and walked behind her out of the exam room and out of the Animal Clinic. 

He stayed silent as he trailed behind her to the mid-size green SUV. After she opened the door, he climbed into the passenger seat and recalled something he read about wolves when he’d done his research after Derek offered him the bite – wolves mated for life. He wondered as he watched Ms. Morrell put the car into reverse, if the same was true for werewolves. 

*

Genevieve glanced over at Isaac as she drove. Though, the beta was suspiciously silent, it was clear that there were questions that he wanted to ask. And it wasn’t in her nature to leave such questions unanswered.

“Isaac, is there anything you want to ask me?” When he didn’t respond, she glanced over at him and hedged toward a question of her own that had her curious and one that she knew would get him talking. “Back in the exam room, what did you sense?”

“You-you’re human but your scent is like Derek’s. I mean you don’t actually smell like him or anything but the scent is pack. I noticed it before at school.”

She tsked. “That explains why I’ve had additional shadows for the last couple of days. Which by the way, you might want to work on that, I probably didn’t catch you the first time. But, you’re not inconspicuous.”

“You knew?” Isaac asked surprised as though he thought she hadn’t known he was there. “Why didn’t you say anything to Derek?” 

“I was curious why you would follow me but I suspected that my scent had changed and you were checking me out. It’s okay I see no reason to tell Derek.” 

“So why can’t I hear you?”

“What do you mean?”

“At school and just now, in the exam room I could see you talking but I couldn’t hear you. And the same thing happened at the school when I was outside your office.”

Genevieve nodded then finally understanding. “Did Dr. Deaton tell you about mountain ash?”

“No, is that like magic?”

“Not exactly. Many cultures believe that mountain ash protects against the supernatural. The Animal Clinic is lined with it and so is my office.”

“But, we can walk in and out of the animal clinic and your office? The stuff that Stiles put down outside the rave wouldn’t let us out or Derek in.”

“To use mountain ash, you have to human and believe in its power. And your belief transfers into the power of the ash. You can control it; will it to what you want it to do. I want students to come into my office and feel comfortable telling me anything without people overhearing so no one can hear it. Deaton has the same principle just a little different than mine.”

“Cool.”

“I’m glad you think so.” She pulled onto his street. “But, now I have a favor to ask of you. I want to ask you a question and I want you to be honest with me. Can you do that?” He nodded hesitantly.  
“Where have you been staying?”

“At my house,” Isaac replied to which Genevieve shook her head with a soft snort. She pulled in front of his driveway and stopped. “It’s okay I-I’ve been paying the bills and everything.”

“Isaac, how old are you?”

“Sixteen but I’ll be seventeen in the summer.”

Genevieve sighed inwardly. Although, she’d promised Derek she would stay out of his pack business, she couldn’t in good conscious let Isaac stay in a house by himself with the kanima across the street. “Isaac, you’re just a kid, a teenager. That you are managing to keep a house over your head with everything going on tells me that you are very responsible. However, you are still a minor and you shouldn’t have to worry about keeping a roof over head. And more importantly you shouldn’t be staying in this house by yourself.”

Isaac clenched his jaw and glanced away out the window. “Derek’s okay with it. And I don’t stay by myself all the time, sometimes Boyd stays or I stay at Derek’s place.”

“Fine, then I’ll take you there.”

“Why?” 

“Because I can’t leave you in a house across the street from kanima who already tried to kill you once tonight.” At that Isaac finally returned her gaze. “Now, where is Derek’s place?”

Having no other option Isaac gave her the address at which she frowned at. “That’s not an apartment. It’s in the industrial part of town and if I recall correctly that’s just an abandoned subway station and a couple of vacant warehouses.” Isaac nodded.

Genevieve put her car in gear and took off from the house. “Yeah, so that’s not happening. I’ll just take you home with me tonight and figure this out tomorrow.”

“Ms. Morrell,” he started. 

“Genevieve, you can call me Genevieve because I think we are going to get to know each other very well.” 

“Ms.-Genevieve, I still don’t think Derek would approve.”

“Well, I’m not concerned about your Alpha, right now. I’m going home and I’m taking you with me and that’s final.”

“I-okay,” Isaac replied at lost for any other words and remained silent as she drove through the streets. 

Genevieve silently navigated her car through her quiet neighborhood into her garage. She turned off her car as she pressed the button to close her garage door. Once it closed she got out of her car using her keys she opened the locked door to gain entrance to her house. She led Isaac though the house pausing in the living room to turn on the light and drop her keys on the hook by the kitchen nook. 

“So the guest room is the room at the top of the staircase. There should be towels and stuff in the closet next to the bathroom. If you want something to eat you can help yourself to whatever’s in the kitchen.”

Isaac nodded and scratched his head. “Uh, so what are you going to do about Derek?”

“Don’t worry about Derek. I probably have some clothes that you could wear upstairs. I’ll go grab some things.” She said as she walked out into the hallway and hung up her jacket in the closet. Isaac nodded and quietly walked into her living room and sat down on the sofa. With one last glance at him, she took off upstairs to get him some clothes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thoughts?


	9. Chapter Eight

**Chapter Eight**

Derek walked into Genevieve’s house after sending Scott home to rest. With three new betas and the full moon coming that night, he had his hands full.

He made his way soundlessly through the house bypassing the living room to go straight upstairs. He paused briefly outside the guest bedroom hearing the steady thump of a resting body and recognizing the scent of his beta Isaac. He continued down the hallway to Genevieve’s bedroom. 

He opened the door and was unsurprised to see her sitting up in the bed reading a book. He shut the door as quietly as possible. “Why is Isaac in your guest bedroom?”

Genevieve merely glanced over at the clock and marked the page of her book closing it. She had tried unsuccessfully to sleep when she’d first arrived home after getting Isaac settled. But, she had gotten so used to sleeping with the Alpha in her bed that she found she couldn’t get comfortable without him there. So instead she pulled out one of the old tomes that her mother had given to her years ago about pack histories and began reading. She was so immersed in the text, she hadn’t been aware that time was just ticking by until she’d felt the sense of awareness she always felt when Derek was near. “How’s Scott? Did he get home okay?”

“He’s fine. You didn’t answer my question, why is Isaac in the guest bedroom?” Derek asked as he stripped of his Henley leaving on a white wife beater. “I thought you were going to take him home.” 

“I was but…” she trailed off getting distracted as Derek continued to peel off layers of clothes until he was in nothing but his boxer briefs. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts now was not the time to get distracted. Genevieve pushed back the covers and slid out of the bed. “You know what, why don’t you take a shower and I’ll go make some coffee.” 

“Coffee? Have you even been to sleep?” Derek asked as he watched her grab a robe to cover her beige tank top and pajama pants. 

“All the more reason for some coffee,” she said as she breezed out the door and headed to the kitchen.

Twenty minutes later Derek joined her in the kitchen as she stood at the island nursing a cup of coffee barefoot wearing jeans with a ribbed gray wife beater. His hair was mussed and wet but not dripping.

“So why is Isaac here?”

“I have a better question for you, why has he been staying in that house alone?”

“What do you mean?”

“Derek the paperwork that you signed says you’re his legal guardian but you’ve been with me every night so you couldn’t have been with him. He’s been staying there by himself. Across the street from Jackson, the kanima that tried to kill him tonight.”

“Jackson has never made a move on Isaac.”

“That’s not the point. Look, all I’m saying is that you’re his guardian you need to act like it. He may be your beta but he’s still a kid with way too much on his plate already. It’s a lot, between having to worry about school and work to keep a roof over his head with all of this other stuff happening. Are you seriously not seeing the problem I’m having here?”

Derek frowned. “What are you talking about? Isaac’s Dad owned that the house and I’ve been paying all the bills-,”

“Wait a minute, you’re paying his bills?”

“Yes, of course. He doesn’t make nearly enough to take care of himself.” 

She should have known. Genevieve placed her mug on the island and wrapped her arms around Derek’s neck as she leaned into his warmth standing on her toes to press a kiss to his lips. “I’m glad that you’re taking care of him,” she added as she slid back down to her feet. “But, you might want to consider telling him this.”

Derek slid his hands to the small of her back to keep her pressed close to him. “I’ve been busy so I just assumed he knew, but I’ll talk to him if you think it’s important.”

“It is. He just lost his family, even if his father treated him horribly, the man was still his father and he was the only person Isaac had left. And it makes a very big deal to know that there’s someone else there who cares about him.”

“Okay,” Derek replied as he lowered his head to kiss her again when he heard the Isaac’s unsteady gait on the steps and he glanced at the doorway to see the beta walk into the kitchen and stop unsure of what to do next.

Genevieve followed Derek’s gaze and saw Isaac standing at the doorway. The Alpha and the Beta stared at one another as if they were unsure how to react so Genevieve took action rolling her eyes at their antics as she dropped her arms from Derek’s neck pausing to raising her brow to him when he didn’t drop his hands. As his hands slid away she pressed her hand against his chest and pushed back turning. “Good morning Isaac, you’re up early.”

“Uh, yeah I have to go to work. I was just going to-,”

“Isaac, would you like something to eat before you go?” She asked moving to the refrigerator. “I can make you something.”

“No, I can get something later.” Isaac replied unsure.

“Isaac, I won’t take no for answer. Let me make you breakfast and then you can go to work.” She turned and glanced back a Derek indicating for him to leave with her eyes. “Derek why don’t you go upstairs and get some sleep it’s been a long night.”

“Sure.” Derek said leaving his beta in the kitchen with Genevieve.

After Derek left, all of the awkwardness seemed to leave the kitchen as Genevieve whipped up a quick breakfast of an omelet and whole wheat toast for Isaac. Genevieve sat on the other side to the small kitchen table drinking her coffee as she waiting until he finished eating before she broached the topic that she wanted to talk to him about. 

“Thanks for breakfast. I better get going so I’m not late. “

“Isaac, wait. Before you go there’s something I want to ask of you. Do you remember what I told you last night in the car?”

“About the mountain ash?”

“Yeah about that, I want you to promise me something if you’re ever in trouble or you need help you’ll come to me.”

“But, what about Derek, I —,”

She leaned over and touched his hand. “Even if Derek is the one in trouble, you know where I am, find me and I will help you. Can you promise me that?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Good.” She smiled patting his hand before she stood and collected his dishes taking them to the sink. “Let me walk you out.”

xXx

Isaac scratched his temple as the door closed behind him at the weirdness of the entire morning. He’d planned to sneak out at first light only to fall asleep and wake up hours later to find that not only could he not sneak out but that she wouldn’t let him leave without breakfast. 

It was strange.

Shaking his head, he left running back to his house to a fresh change of clothes before he headed to work.

xXx

Genevieve locked up the house after Isaac and walked back up the stairs to her bedroom. She’d expected to find him sitting up waiting for her only to find that the Alpha lost in sleep on her bed. 

Derek was lying on his side with one arm tucked under the pillow beneath his head buried beneath the covers. She smiled to herself as saw the jeans and gray undershirt he’d been wearing across the bench in front of her bed. She stripped off her robe and climbed into the bed in front of him, lifting his free arm up wrapping it around her as she pressed herself back again his chest. Derek pressed a kiss on her temple as the couple settled into sleep. 

xXx

A few hours later, Derek awoke to a ringing alarm of his cell phone. He felt Genevieve shift out of his arms to glance at her alarm clock as he leaned down to pluck his cell phone out of the his jean pocket to turn off the alarm. 

“Where are you going?” Genevieve grumbled as she rolled on her side in his direction. She blearily watched him get out of the bed and pull on his jeans and grey wife beater.

“I’m training with the betas today to help them with their first transition.” Derek replied as he pulled on his shoes. “It’s a full moon tonight.”

“Derek a full moon is more than twelve hours away.” She remarked as she shifted closing her eyes.

“I know, but I need them to be prepared so we’re starting early.” When he glanced back Genevieve she had fallen back to sleep. Hoping that she’d sleep a little more, he leaned down and pressed a kiss to her temple before grabbing his phone and leaving the room. He was out of her house and down the road to his car within minutes.

Isaac was waiting for him when he got to the empty lot. 

He got out of his car. “Isaac,” he started.

“I wanted to talk to you to tell you that I didn’t mean to ruin things with you and Genevieve¬-I mean Ms. Morrell.” Isaac rushed out. “She-she asked me a question and I couldn’t lie to her. I tried to get her to bring me here but she wouldn’t-,”

“Isaac,” Derek called again this time placing his hand on the beta’s shoulders stopping. “You need to relax. I’m not mad, I was surprised to find you there this morning but Genevieve was right, I shouldn’t have let you stay at your house once we knew Jackson was the kanima.”

“It’s okay.”

“No,” Derek sighed dropping his hand and he started toward the warehouse. “It’s not but we’re gonna figure out what to do about that after tonight.”

“Okay.” Isaac chimed as he followed Derek down the stairs.

“By the way, I’d like to keep last night between the two of us for now. We’ve got too much going on to bring this in the mix.”

“Okay.” Isaac replied and continued to follow Derek into the warehouse.

xXx

After Genevieve had awakened she’d showered, dressed and cleaned her house from top to bottom. Then she treated herself to early dinner as she read up on the current requirements for minors to become emancipated as the issue with Isaac weighed heavily on her mind.

Although, she hoped that once everything calmed down that Derek would step up as Isaac’s guardian and take care of the situation. She also realized that it might not be the most ideal situation for Isaac and figured becoming an emancipated minor might be a better option. Frankly, she didn’t see either Derek or Isaac being okay with emancipation but it would be better for her to broach the subject before CPS did if they found out about his living situation. 

The phone began to ring. She reached and picked up her cordless phone by the desk, she pressed the button for the speaker. “Hello.”

“Is this a good time?” Deaton asked.

“It’s as good a time as any, Alan. Are you looking to make an appointment because my guidance hours on Monday through Friday.”

“I deserved that. Would it help if I said that I was sorry.” 

“It might if I truly believed that you were. But, I don’t think you are, anymore than I think what I said was wrong.”

“You _are_ underestimating them, as I said last night, I believe that they are capable of handling much more than what you think.

“Alan, it’s not that I underestimate their capabilities. I just-I believe that withholding information from them won’t help in the long run no matter how capable they are.”

“And if they knew about the eminent arrival of the Alphas how would that change anything? How would it affect how they deal with kanima?”

“Maybe it won’t, but it’s a choice they don’t currently have.”

“I must advise my charges the way I see fit.”

“Your charges? Who are they exactly does that include? Derek? Or is it solely reserved for Scott?” Genevieve paused she hadn’t meant to get into yet another disagree with Deaton. But, it was something she’d been wondering since she’d arrived at Beacon Hills and observed Deaton in his role with Scott and Derek. 

“Why don’t you say what you obviously think that I’m doing wrong Genevieve?

“I’ve talked to Derek, had several conversations with him in fact and the one thing that became very clear to me is that he has no idea who or what you are to him. Years ago, you told me that an emissary has a choice in who they serve it can be an Alpha or a pack. And you aligned yourself with the Hales, advising Talia and then Laura but not Derek.”

“Derek was not meant to be an Alpha-,”

“But, he is one. He is the Alpha of the Hale pack and you’ve given him with no guidance. Where is your allegiance to him? As emissary to the Hales it’s your duty—”

“My _duty_ as you call it is to help those who want to be helped. Scott seeks my help and asks for it, Derek does not. He doesn’t want my help and he doesn’t trust me. He makes his own choices without thinking the consequences of his actions. And in doing so makes one bad decision after another endangering not only himself but everyone around him. I cannot help him until he decides to help himself first.”

“I’m not excusing his choices however ill-advised that they are. I am only suggesting that if he knew that you were his emissary maybe he’d make different choices.”

There was silence on the phone for several moments as Deaton seemed to consider what she was saying. “I will take your concerns under advisement, Genevieve. But, remember this, I have been doing this job for a very long time and I know my role in this. Maybe it’s time for you to figure out what yours is to be.”

“Meaning what?”

“You’re right, Derek does need an emissary. However, you cannot be both his emissary and his mate. When the time comes you’ll have to choose what you want that role to be.” Deaton hung up. 

Genevieve pressed the button for the speaker as she settled back against her chair. She needed to clear her head and relieve some much needed stress. A trip to the gym was just what the doctor ordered. 

xXx

Derek walked outside the warehouse using his cell phone to call Genevieve. It rang several times before going straight to voicemail. “It’s Derek. I didn’t think you were going anywhere tonight. Anyway, everything is set-up and I’ll check in a couple of hours.”

He swiped his finger over his cell phone and he slid the gadget into his back pocket. He felt the prickling of the hair on his body rise as he felt the stirrings of the moon calling to him over him. He closed his eyes, breathing deeply as pulled on his anger to anchor and resisted the urge to shift. He opened his eyes once he was sure that he wasn’t in any danger of turning and returned to the train station to watch after his betas.

xXx

Isaac recalled memories of his brother and his father before everything changed … of happier times and was able to take control of his body resisting the call of the moon as his face returned to its human visage. He glanced back to see the Erica and Boyd were still mid-shift but at least they’d stopped growling. He was waiting for Derek to come back when a strange scent drifted to him. It was familiar to him but he couldn’t place it.

He closed his eyes to focus his senses on detecting the scent breathing in deeply. 

“Lydia,” his eyes snapped open in time to see the redhead step onto the train car. As she appeared closer to him he realized that her eyes were dazzled as she came bent over him and blowing something in his face. As Isaac lost consciousness, fearing what Lydia had done to Derek and the others he called out mentally for the closest link he could find open to him, “Genevieve.”

xXx

Across town, Genevieve settled back against her bath pillow as she let the hot water sooth her sore muscles from the workout she’d undertaken. She’d gone to the gym and sparred with a fellow gym buddy for an hour and half until her partner begged off. Then, she moved on to a punching bag to release her excess energy and stress for another half hour before finally deciding to return home to soak in her tub. 

After she arrived home, Genevieve checked her messages and saw that Derek had left one. Deciding to listen to it later she twisted her hair into a loose bun and clipped it place on top of her head. Then, shedding her clothes she got into the tub filled with a mixture of Eucalyptus, Lavender, and Vanilla bath soaps and salts. 

As she let scents fill her head, she closed her eyes and slowly drifted to sleep. 

_Genevieve was walking through a thicket of trees in the woods where she’d grown up. She looked ahead and saw a white wolf watching her in the distance the yellow eyes glowing in the darkness._

_As she got closer to the wolf, it shifted and ran heading for the forest ahead._

_Genevieve took off behind it, following the wolf closely until it disappeared before her eyes leaving her in front of a burnt house._

_“This is where it happened,” a soft voice said from behind her and Genevieve spun around._

_There leaning against the tree dressed in a short leather jacket, a black t-shirt and dark jeans was Laura Hale._

_“Laura?”_

_“It’s nice to see you too, Genevieve.” The slim brunette pushed herself away from the tree stalking toward her._

_“This is real?”_

_“As real as any dream is or at least that’s what she told me.”_

_“But, you’re dead?”_

_“That I am but I had an unnatural death and I’m told that you understand such things.”_

_“I do. Why are you here?”_

_“I have a message for you. He returns tonight to fulfill a debt he made six years ago. I couldn’t stop him but you can. Don’t let him succeed in becoming one of them. Help Derek, guide him make him the Alpha that he needs to be.”_

_“I don’t understand who’s coming? How do I help Derek?”_

_“I’ve been watching you and you’re already doing it. Keep the pack together, he needs it and so do you. If the pack is strong, the Alpha is strong,” Laura turned to see a bright light in the darkness. “I’m being called.”_

_“Wait Laura, don’t leave yet. I don’t understand. Why me?”_

_Laura returned her gaze with eerie bright green eyes. “Because you choose him as your mate and you see what he could be. Claim him as yours, cement the bond and claim your pack.”_

_“Genevieve,” a voice screamed out in the darkness piercing through the haze of the dream._

_“What is that?” Genevieve called out as she felt a powerful gust of wind plow into her almost knocking her to the ground._

_“It’s your pack,” Laura answered as she stepped closer to Genevieve and placed her hand on her shoulder._

Genevieve jolted awake causing water to splash out of the tub as she sat up. She felt the tug of her bond shimmer out of place. “Derek,” she gasping for searched for her bond to feel the thread pulse with no reaction to her mental tug. Immediately knowing something was wrong she climbed out of the tub, unplugging the plug as she went.

She tugged her towel swiftly drying her body before rushing into the bedroom to pull on some clothes. She was dressed and in her car within ten minutes driving to the address that Isaac had given her the previous night figuring that is where Derek would be held up for the night.

Driving as radically as she had been she was lucky that no one pulled her over. She parked the car outside the warehouse and got out. Instantly, she felt the bond flicker but without the constant pulse that she normally felt when Derek was near. Recalling everything that Derek had told her about how the bond worked she let her senses guide her leading her around the warehouse to a staircase.

“Derek,” she called cautiously as she slowly walked down the steps unsure of what kind of danger she was walking into. She wished at she hadn’t left her house so suddenly without even bringing weapon. As she made it to bottom of the staircase she surveyed the open space and was surprised to find that Derek was nowhere in sight but the bond still flickered with awareness.

She was about to return up the stairs when she heard the clank of metal and a moan coming from the subway car. Glancing around the space again, she saw a pipe lying on the ground and grabbed it arming herself as she walked toward the subway car. 

Genevieve held the pipe in front of her as she stepped onto the subway car the bond came to life vibrating as she spotted Isaac leaning against the bar he was chained to with his head bobbing. “Isaac.”

“It’s Genevieve,” she dropped the pipe and ran to Isaac instantly taking his pulse. It was strong. She released the breathe she been holding and smiled with relief. She patted his head and his eyes fluttered open at her touch and he stared at her. 

As she held his gaze, she knew then why the bond flickered. It hadn’t been Derek she’d been tracking but Isaac. The bond to Derek was there but there was a new connection … a link to Isaac. 

He blinked and his eyes became unfocused again and it was then she saw the powder on his face. She gently wiped at the remains on the powder. It had a coarse, chalky texture but was gave it away was the purple stain left by the residue. “Wolfbane,” she glanced up to see Erica and Boyd in similar positions to Isaac and wondered briefly if Derek had done this. Immediately, she put the very thought out of her mind knowing that for all his faults Derek wouldn’t use wolfsbane to harm his Betas. 

Genevieve bent down slightly until she was level with Isaac’s face. “Isaac,” she called holding his head up watching as his eyes flickered. “Where is Derek? Can you tell me what happened?”

Isaac’s gaze remained unfocused though as he silently blinked at her. She realized that he wouldn’t be able to tell her anything still under the influence of the wolfsbane. She patted his head gently positioning him back against the bar as she went back to check on Erica and Boyd. They both in the same condition as Isaac but she didn’t feel them a connection to them like she did Isaac. She put that thought out of her mind as well as she wiped them both down and left the subway car.

She was pulling her cell phone out to call Deaton when she spotted something gleaming from the ground just outside the subway car. She bend to pick up the item, it was a diamond stud earring, an expensive one.

Her mind raced trying to figure out what it could mean when she touched the residue of the wolfsbane coating her fingers. It was wolfsbane in its purest form grounded up. Hunters wouldn’t bother with this form though effective it was messy and required them to be close contact to use it. Hunters also preferred to shoot their prey not blow dust on them. Then, it hit her pure wolfsbane and a diamond stud, Lydia.

She stood and ran back up the stairs of the warehouse dialing a number on her phone as she went. He answered on the first ring. “Where is Peter Hale buried?”

xXx

Peter Hale regarded his nephew on the floor as he pulled on the shirt that Lydia, his _dear_ Lydia had left him before she’d taken off as they agreed. It was a pity really when she could be of so much use for him, but alas, a deal was a deal and she’d done her part.

In retrospect, it was fortuitous that she had happened on the field with when she did. It was perfect he couldn’t have planned it any better. His plan was almost complete and it was a shame he only way he could succeed was through the blood of his pack. But, sometimes you had to do things you didn’t like to survive and this was just one of those things. 

He knelt, claws fanning out as he raised his hand intent on reclaiming his Alphahood when out of nowhere sparks of electricity flew at him knocking him away from Derek and send him flying into the wall. 

As he slid down the wall, he groaned watching as a young, black woman stood in the archway with long black hair flying around her shoulders breathing deeply. Her hands held up crackling with slivery threads running through her hands like electric currents. “Stay away from him.” 

With one hand held in his direction she walked over to his nephew. “Derek,” she sighed and she knelt down beside his nephew running her hands over his chest. 

Peter quietly rose to his hunches as he shook off the remaining tremors of the shock. “What are you?”

Her head snapped up as she narrowed her eyes at him and slowly raised a hand in his direction. Again the slivery threads ran across her fingers crackling and sizzling in earnest as she lowered her other hand over Derek’s pulse.

“That boy never learns, always sleeping with the enemy.” Peter rose to his feet slowly cracking his neck. “I hate to tell you this witch,” he spit out. “But a little electricity won’t kill me.”

The young woman closed her hand into a fist and blew into it. “What about fire?” She opened her palm showing the threads of electricity spinning into a bright orange flame. She slowly rose to her feet standing over Derek protectively as she brought her hands together and flames dance on both open palms. When she finally looked up at him, her eyes which were a light with the flames were glowing a bright, fiery red. “Can fire kill you?”

It was the combination of the heat in her gaze and a cloying scent that perfumed the air so powerful that he fell to his knees. “You’re mates,” he hissed out as he recognized the beguiling scent of bonded mates coming from the young woman. If the pain of her forcing him to his knees wasn’t so severe he would laugh. It just figured that his nephew wouldn’t align himself in blood bond with a normal human but a witch, an Alpha bitch. He wondered briefly if she had any idea of how powerful she was. 

“Newly mated, Peter. You know how that can be,” Alan Deaton said as he appeared in Peter’s peripheral vision holding his case in the archway. “You wouldn’t want to deny your nephew the experience it would you?”

“That I do. But, I’m not the one holding a ball of fire!” Peter said through his clenched teeth as he tried to fight off the hold she had over him. 

With a calmness that was beginning to piss him off Peter watched as Deaton lowered his bag to the floor and slowly began to approach the witch with his hands held up. “Genevieve, you don’t need to do this. Peter won’t harm you.”

“He attacked Derek; he was going to kill him!” She growled, the flames between her hands rising turning shifting from orange to blue.

“I think you’re pissing her off, Doc. I’d like to not be burnt after it took so long for my return.” Peter called out causing Deaton to shoot him a look of annoyance. But, Peter didn’t give a shit, he was the one frozen in place on the floor under threat of a fiery death. 

Deaton continued to approach the witch, placing his hand on her raised arm. Instantly, the flames receded to nothing. “Genevieve, Peter won’t give you any trouble.” Slowly the doctor shifted until he was in front of the witch blocking her vision from him. 

All at once, Peter felt her hold release over him as he gained control of his body once more again. Not waiting to give her chance to do anything else, he rose to his feet. “Well, I think I’ve overstayed my welcome and I’d hate to be a bother. Tell my nephew, I’ll look forward to seeing to him again.” When the witch turned her head in his direction he was already running out the door.

xXx

Genevieve turned to look after Peter to see him running out she jerked her arm away from Deaton’s hand. 

“What are you doing? You let him leave! You have no right!” She shrieked electricity crackling on her hands. “He attacked Derek–,”

“And you stopped him,” Deaton replied calmly moving so that he held her fiery gaze. “Genevieve, you need to get a hold of yourself. We are not hunters we do not kill without cause. And we do not kill for vengeance.”

Genevieve could feel an intense rage building inside of her blinding her with a red haze but couldn’t stop it. She wanted blood, needed blood to be split for the violation of harming her mate. “I am the **Mate** to the **Alpha** of the Hale Pack and I am **NOT** bound by your codes.”

“Genevieve!” Deaton finally snapped grabbing her arms, his touch dowsing the prickles of electricity to nothingness. “Focus on my voice, the urge of to take Peter’s blood isn’t you, it isn’t your will. Resist it, you need to take control.”

Genevieve closed her eyes allowing Deaton’s voice to flow over her. She pulled on every technique she’d learned to calm her herself down resisting the pull of the rage that enwrapped her the moment she stepped into the Hale house. After taking several slow deep breaths she felt the red haze fade away. When she opened her eyes again, they were her normal brown.

Deaton dropped his hands with a nod and stepped back to grab his bag off the floor. “Are you okay?”

“I-I don’t know what happened. I was worried and upset but when I walked through … the rage… it just consumed me. That’s never happened before.”

Deaton set his bag on the floor and shifted to check Derek’s vitals. “You’ve never been mated before. How long has bond been settled?”

Genevieve moved to kneel on the other side of Derek, running her hand over his arm. “A few weeks. Is he going to be okay?”

“He’ll be fine but I imagine Peter’s return has taken quite of bit of his strength and caused the bond weaken. Your reaction, the rage it wasn’t you it was him amplified by his feelings of rage being in this house. You should have told me Genevieve.”

Genevieve shook her head running her hand through his short locks. “Can we not do this right now? Why hasn’t he awakened? Peter had to have been out for almost an hour before I got here.” 

“You’re right we will talk about this later, Genevieve.” Deaton warned calmly. “The wolfsbane has put him in a coma-like state but as his mate can call him and he will awaken.”

Genevieve nodded as she placed her hands on his chest and called him. “Derek, I need you to wake up.” Immediately, there was a reaction a slight twitch. “Derek,” she repeated and his head moved. “Derek, wake up,” she ordered gently and his red eyes flashed open as he jerked awake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thoughts? I'd love to know what you think.


	10. Interlude - The Beginning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not the next chapter but an interlude of events that take place before the start of the story.

A young man with tangled black hair streaming down his back sat kneeling with blood dripping from his mouth and his dirty bloodied hand pressed over the belly of a young black woman. He chanted over her repeatedly in a mantra when suddenly he was struck silent as an electric current hit him knocking him onto his back.

He groaned trembling as the current raced through his body. He hacked up blood black as midnight curdling up his throat as he could feel his insides liquefying, barely hearing the rustled crunch of dead leaves around him. An old woman with dark mahogany skin, her grey hair streaked with white and pulled back from her face appeared before him leaning on a black cane staring at him with her haunting grey eyes. “You’re too late, we’re bound.” He gurgled.

“It’s of no consequence, Victor. Morrells are a sturdy stock. You think you’re the first to test us.” She hummed. “You’re not. You may think you have a link to this world but you’ll not succeed. I’ll die first before I let you take one of mine.” She glanced up looking at someone in the distance. “Make sure to destroy his body.” 

“I’ll be seeing you, Celeste. Real soon,” he promised laughing, gurgling on the black blood that dripped out of his mouth. You could destroy the body but not the mind or soul. And his was tied to the unborn child of the emissary. When the time came that child would be his reckoning. He gasped taking one last breath and died.

 

_Seven months later …._

A young woman stood in the bedroom staring at her reflection in the mirror. She was of average height with medium brown skin, dark brown hair currently pulled back in a solitary braid and dark soulful eyes. Her husband used to say that you could get lost staring into her eyes. But, Marius was gone now and all that remained of him was their child that she had birthed several hours before.

As she smoothed the cotton material over her once pregnant belly she wondered to the bassinet where her daughter lay sleeping. Unable to help herself she plucked the child out of the bassinet and brought her back to the bed cuddling the baby close. Her daughter was beautiful. Her warm brown complexion and black hair was all the baby had inherited from her father. The baby’s eyes were the mirror image of her own. 

But, the one question that enraptured her was whose nature did her daughter inherit – hers or Marius’. The pack’s new emissary and midwife were unsure and particularly in cases like hers when a person was bitten while pregnant, depending upon the gestation of the fetus it could go either way. And since most natural born werewolves did not shift until toddler age she wouldn’t know for several months yet.

“Penny,” a voice called from the doorway.

“Celeste,” Penny said as she glanced up smiling at her grandmother-in-law as the older woman walked into the bedroom leaning heavily on the black cane. “I didn’t think you were back yet.”

“Oh, now nothing could keep me away from my newest great-granddaughter.” Celeste replied with slight twang denoting her southern roots as she eased into the armchair by the bed. “Now, let me see that grandbaby of mine.”

Penny smiled and shifted leaning forward to pass the sleeping child to Celeste. The older woman placed the cane by headboard and took the child into her arms. 

“Well, now isn’t she just a beauty. She reminds me of when Marius was born. But, of course like most men in our family he was always up and watching everyone. This one must have inherited her quiet nature from you. Have you given any thought to my offer? I think you and my newest charge would get along just fine.”

“Celeste,” Penny sighed as she settled back against the pillows on her bed. “It’s not that I don’t appreciate the offer. But, my place is here. Marius and I chose to make our home here. And even though he’s gone, I feel like I should stay. I think he would want me to besides the pack needs me here.”

“You don’t need to explain connections to me. But, you can be a Beta anywhere, Missy. And my pack would gladly accept you. Do you really want to raise your daughter here in the pack where her father was murdered?”

“Yes, I do. I want my daughter to see the good in this pack. I don’t want her to be scared or allow her fear to control her. Celeste you told me that we make our own destiny. And mine is here, I feel it and I believe it.” Penny reached for Celeste’s hands to reassure the other woman. “Please understand Celeste, it’s not that I don’t appreciate everything that you’ve done for me or for us. This is where Marius and I wanted to raise our family and I’m going to let that … Him take that away from me after what he’s already taken.”

“Well, if your mind is made up then I guess I’ll have to accept it.”

“Thank you,” Penny said sincerely. “I do hope you’ll stay a while if you can.”

“Child, please, as if I’d let anything stop me from being there for this little bundle of joy. Now for a serious question, have you decided what you’re going to call her?”

“I have actually. I was thinking about Marin, you know after Marius. But, that seemed like a big weight to put on a child so I thought that it would work for her middle name.”

“What is her first name?”

Penny smiled. “I’m going to call her Genevieve.” 

Celeste bent down to press a kiss against the sleeping baby’s forehead. “Welcome to the family, Genevieve Marin Morrell!”

 

_Sixteen years later …_

Blood was everywhere.

As Genevieve came to her senses she saw the blood on her hands and clothes. She brought her hands to her face and they were shaking with dirt under her nails. But, what surprised her most of all was electric current streaming through her fingers running down her arms.

_Kill her,_ the voice ordered in her head.

Her head snapped up and gazed at the tall man standing next to her spinning a wave of current like a hurricane in his hands. The man who had been haunting her dreams turning them into nightmares, the man— no the beast— who had killed her father, ripping out his throat while he tried to protect her mother. Victor.

“Genevieve, you can fight back my love. You don’t have to do what he wants.” Her gaze shot down to her mother who kneeled at her feet with the electric current slowly climbing up her body wrapping itself around her like a boa constrictor. 

_Kill her!_

“Mom, I don’t know how to stop it,” Genevieve cried dropping to her knees in front of her mother as she tried in vain to pull back the current.

“Sweetheart, listen to me.” Penny struggled to speak as the current continued to wrap itself around her body slowly creeping up. “Victor isn’t real. He bound himself to you but you can control him.”

Genevieve sat back on her hunches as tears slid down her face. “Te-tell me what to do, I don’t know what to do.”

“It’s like mountain ash, Genevieve. To everyone else it’s useless dust but in your hands it’s a powerful tool. You can manipulate it and will it to do your bidding.”

“Mountain ash,” Genevieve whispered recalling her all of her training and how she had learned to control it.  
Slowly she rose to her feet holding her hands out she took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She channeled all her thoughts and energy on the current, willing not to hurt her mother, binding it to her and her alone.

_What are you doing?_ Victor shouted turning to her once he realized that his hold over Genevieve was gone.

“You’re doing it, my love.”

When Genevieve felt the waves of energy crackling around her, she opened her eyes to see her mother standing before her smiling. “You did good baby. Is he still there?”

“Yes, he’s upset though.”

“Don’t worry about him. Let’s finish this.” Penny pulled off a chain from around her neck that held a small vial. She offered it to her daughter. “Your grandmother told me that you would know what to do with this.”

_You bitch! I’m in your head and you can’t kill me!_

“I do,” Genevieve nodded as she took the vial from her mother and twisted it open to pour a thick purple powder into her palms. 

_We’re connected Genevieve, you and I. You’ll never be rid of me._ He screamed at her.

“Dust to dust, Victor.” She moved to a hole in the ground and sprinkled the purple powder over the shallow grave. Then, she called on the current that ran through her hands, closing it into a fist she blew on it. Raising her hand she opened the hand over the hole dropping a small ball of fire into the grave. 

Then all she could hear was Victor’s screams of torment until finally he faded away.

 

_Ten years later …_

Genevieve picked up the phone on the first ring. 

“This is Genevieve.”

“Hello, Gen I do hope you’re not too busy to talk to an old friend.”

“Of course not Alan, I’m never too busy to talk to my foster brother.” Genevieve replied as she dropped her pen on her desk. “I didn’t see you at the memorial service for Celeste.”

“I know I couldn’t get away this year.”

“It’s hard to believe that she’s been gone for three years. But, I’m sure you didn’t call me to talk about this. What’s going on? Has there been any new information about the fire?” The Hale fire was common knowledge in the supernatural community. Killing an entire family of werewolves and even their human family members was unheard of.

“No, unfortunately it’s the remained the same. It’s actually why I’m calling you. I know that you aren’t taking on any cases while you’re back in school but I really need a favor from you.”

“Anything, Alan, you know that.” She and Alan had grown up together, trained together. They were each other’s anchors under the tutelage of her great-grandmother, the late Celeste Morrell. They treated each other as siblings even though there was no blood relation between them.

“My Alpha has a brother. She thinks he’s on the brink of depression.”

“I thought Peter Hale was injured in a fire.”

“Peter was injured. Laura Hale, his niece has the Alpha inheritance from her mother. The brother I am referring to hers, his name is Derek.”

“Okay, well I’m in middle of a semester I can’t leave so he’ll have to come to me. I can make some time if you give them my number I’ll meet with him.”

“Thank you, Genevieve.” Deaton said hanging up. 

xXx

Derek and Genevieve had been meeting informally for a few weeks. The first few sessions were all the same, she would ask questions and he would respond with one or two words. 

He was completely closed off. Genevieve secretly considered ending the sessions altogether since Derek evidently was getting nothing from it. 

As she walked from McKeldin Library to begin the trek to her car she spotted some people jogging around the mall, something that you would see normally about campus on any given day. It was just average college life and you got used to see around this time of day. That’s when it struck her, she was approaching Derek’s issues from wrong perspective; a human perspective. But, Derek wasn’t human, he was a werewolf, born and raised in a pack. And that was the way she needed to deal with him. She couldn’t approach him as she would any other student, to reach Derek she would need to engage the wolf.

The next session, she arranged for Derek to meet her outside the Eppley Recreation Center at a quarter to seven. She had dressed in a t-shirt with and pair of jogging pants and sneakers. She was stretching her legs, when he arrived in track pants with a t-shirt in what she was beginning to see was his customary color of choice—black.

“What are we doing here?” Derek asked as walked up to her. 

Genevieve rose to her feet and inclined her head to the jogging trail. “I thought we might be due a change of scenery.”

Shaking his head Derek followed her to the sidewalk and starting walking beside her. “Is this what you do with all your patients?”

“All my patients aren’t like you,” she replied as they walked through the parking lot leading to the trial. 

“I love jogging at night. This is my favorite of the year, the nights come earlier and it gets cooler.” Derek said nothing. Genevieve held sigh as she looked out at the path just ahead of her. She’d thought that being out in nature would appeal to his animal nature and allow him to feel more at ease with her. This was her absolute last idea and it was a bust. He was unwilling to let her in and there was nothing she could do about that.

“You know Derek, its okay to mourn the death of your family because you loved them. But, you can’t stop living because of it and they wouldn’t want that for you.” She said quietly. And again she was met with silence, but decided not to push, instead she began to walk the trail with Derek following without any urging from her.

“Mom loved the fall, too. She used to say that it was her favorite season because of the changing colors. She called me her autumn baby,” Derek said softly after a while. She almost didn’t hear him. 

Genevieve grabbed his arm before he could walk away from her. “Thank you for telling me that Derek. This will get easier, I promise. We’ll just take it one step at a time.” He nodded as she dropped her hand from his arm and begin a light jog down the trial. Derek joined her at an easy pace beginning the first of many jogs that they would take together opening up more and more as time went by and they became friends.

xXx

As the months had passed Genevieve learned that although Derek could be sweet and somewhat shy at first the more comfortable that he became around her the more open he was with her. He was much to her surprise, a natural flirt but nothing overtly aggressive about it, so it seemed harmless enough. 

At first, it had just been little comments here and there telling her that looked nice when she wore a dress but she brushed them off as him just being polite. Then, he started bringing her coffee from her favorite coffee shop that was nowhere near the campus. Next, it was food, little baked goods from her favorite bakery in DC. 

Some of her fellow grad students who had noticed his attention toward her had incorrectly assumed that they were dating. She admonished them explaining that Derek was too young for her and just a friend. But, it didn’t matter. After all, it wasn’t as if she could explain that young man who came to see her at various times of the day was really a werewolf she was counseling outside of her office since he could not stand being enclosed in her tiny office. Still, they had given him the name of her Jailbait Crush. 

Derek had overheard them once and had brought it up as they walked along the trail at Rock Creek Park during their next session. Since it was winter, the crisp air had a chilled bite to it.

“I’m not, you know.”

“You’re not what?” 

“I may not be able to legally drink, but I’m not jailbait. I’m an adult.”

“I never said you weren’t.”

“I know, I just thought that you should know that.” Derek added with a careless shrug.

“But, you know that nothing can happen between us, right?” Genevieve stopped walking gently touching his arm as she turned to make him stop as well. Her eyes traced his face as she tried to figure out what he was thinking. “It would be unethical because I’m your counselor.”

“That’s true,” Genevieve let out a relieved breath. “That is if I were seeing you in a professional capacity. But, I’m not. I’m not your patient, client or a student looking for your guidance. We’re just two friends talking, right?” He parroted the words that she had said to him many times before.

“I’m too old for you,” Genevieve sputtered out protesting.

“I like older women.”

“I have a boyfriend—,”

“You used to have a boyfriend. You broke up a couple of months ago.” Derek interrupted.

“I-how do you know that?”

“Your scent,” Derek said smiling…well wolfishly. “If I was your boyfriend my scent would be all over you.”

“That’s … kind of a personal don’t you think.”

Derek laughed. “There’s more than one way to get a scent on someone. I can show you if you like.”

Genevieve raised a hand to hold him off. “That’s not happening, Derek.”

“Relax, Genevieve. I wasn’t propositioning you.”

“Thank goodness,” she balled up fist and hit him in his arm. “Don’t you ever do that to me again, Derek.”

“You know that doesn’t actually hurt, right.” He quipped with laughter in his voice as they continued their walk.

That was the night that she began to dream of him.

At first, the dreams were rather tame really just visions of her running around the woods she’d grown up in and occasionally chasing deer. But eventually they shifted turning into something else altogether. 

Soon the wolf that she been seeing transformed into a man, into Derek.

Derek began chasing her and sometimes he would catch her. He would be shirtless wearing jeans but nothing else. He would strip her of her clothing and his until there were no barriers between them. Then, he would lay her down on the forest ground and take her.

She woke up from sleep more aroused than she’d ever been in her life more times than she cared to admit.  
Though she wrote the dreams off as nothing more than fantasy because she was attracted to Derek they followed her whenever she saw him. She found herself admiring his lips, his jaw, the way he walked, and even the way he wore his clothes. For all her thoughts and protests that he was too young for her, it didn’t stop her from becoming more attracted to him as they spent time together.

It was early spring and they’d going on another of one their walks together. A sudden storm hit them and they were drenched with rain. Luckily, they were close to her apartment so Genevieve thought nothing of inviting him in to dry off.

She had left him in her living room while she grabbed some towels. “Here,” she said offering him the towel to dry off as she returned from changing into some yoga pants and a t-shirt. He had taken off his grey shirt and dropping it on the small table. 

Derek said nothing as he grasped the end of towel and used it to pull her closer to him until there was less than a foot of space between them. He gently pulled the towel out of her hands.

“What are you doing?” She asked quietly as she watched Derek let the towel drift to the floor and he took a step towards her and then another until she had to tilt her head back to meet his eyes.

“Nothing,” She could feel the heat in his stare, her stomach coiling in tension as she waited for him to react. “…yet.”

Derek placed a warm hand on the small of her back bringing her slowly into him, giving her the chance to turn him away. When she didn’t he used his other hand to tilt her head up as he leaned down and brushed his lips against hers. His lips were still slightly damp from their brief time out in the rain. She was surprised at how soft his lips were but she didn’t move away as he kissed her. His lips slipped his tongue into her mouth and her response was almost immediate, placing her hands his shoulders to balance herself as she stood up on her tiptoes pushing her chest into his, feeling the heat from his body searing into hers. 

As the kiss deepened Genevieve slid her hands into his short damp black locks scraping her nails against his nape. Derek reacted instantly moving both hands to the small of her back as his walked them backward until Genevieve’s back hit the wall. They separated briefly both breathing deeply Derek’s broad hands clutching tightly at her hips, their noses colliding just ever so slow as they share a breath. Derek’s eyes meeting hers his pupils dilated. Staring into his eyes she didn’t question it as she gently pushed him back his shoulders. There was a brief moment of confusion but he stepped back.

Giving no thought to all of her protestations over the past few months she grabbed his hand and pulled him along behind her down the hall. Smiling at the look of relief that crossed his features she gently reassured him by squeezing his hand. She led him to her bed and pushed him into a seated position on the bed and straddled him. 

They stared for a single moment before she slid her hands into his thick, black locks and jerked his head back to hers as she slanted her head and kissed him. Genevieve didn’t know how or why it happened but she couldn’t get enough of him. His hands slid under the edge of her shirt, caressing her back and stomach. She pulled back briefly to pull the shirt over her head, tossing it behind her, leaving her in a black lace bra and yoga pants. 

As she returned her gaze to his, something inside Genevieve clicked into place. She lost all thought acting on instinct she sat up straight caressing Derek’s clean-shaven jaw as she held his eyes. “ _Awaken my wolf, come to me._ ” 

Derek face shifted immediately loosing its human visage as his eyes turning a bright blue, fangs elongating from his mouth, nails turning into claws that lightly scratched her back. He growled softly as she rocked against him.

“Shh,” Genevieve said smiling as she leaning forward and aggressively kissing him, sliding her lip along one fang and cutting her lip. She pulled back when she could taste her own blood. Holding his gaze on hers, she channeled the threads of electricity around them as she chanted, “ _I invoke Hecate to take my blood as offering and bind me to my Wolf. I invoke Hera to bless this union as sacred and let no other break it. I invoke Cernnunos to grant this union his strength through the passage of time. And I invoke She who is Maiden, Mother, and Crone to seal this union in this life till death parts us.”_ Genevieve’s eyes were a light with a slivery glow as she channeled her energy to wrap around herself and Derek sealing them in a cocoon of energy so powerful in knocked them back on her bed.

She blinked hazily as she rolled off Derek to the side of the bed and promptly lost consciousness. 

*

Laura Hale was just beginning her shift at work when she felt an overwhelming almost feral sense of loss and isolation. Derek… she couldn’t feel her bond with Derek anymore. The loss was so severe it struck her like an immediate loss to one of her senses, causing her to pass out. When she came to she could feel the loss like a hollow ache to her bones, somehow she managed to reassure her boss that they didn’t need to call an ambulance and that she would be okay to drive home. 

She had her brother on speed dial even before she cleared the building. There was no answer so she left a harried message for him to call her as soon as he got her message. And she called again, then five more times one after another in the time it took for her to walk to her car in the parking garage for him to call her back. When he didn’t return the call or text she knew he was in trouble.

She dialed Alan’s number next and he answered immediately.

“Laura is everything okay?”

“I don’t know. Something’s happened and I can’t feel Derek anymore. I’ve called him and he hasn’t called me back— but it’s not like before … I know that he’s alive but I can’t sense him.”

“Laura, maybe he’s out of range.”

“No. Derek always calls me back no matter what. Something is wrong, I can feel it.”

“All right, I trust your instincts. We can track him but you’ll need help. Genevieve can help you.” There was a ruffling sound on the phone before Deaton replied again. “She should be at home by now. I’ll give you her address and I’ll call her to let her know you’re coming.” He recited the address that was about thirty minutes away from her.

“Thank you, Alan.”

“It’s not a problem. Call me once you’ve found him.”

“I will.” Laura hung up the phone started the car and took off. She barely managed to stay under the speed limit but did made it to the apartment complex in less than thirty minutes. She got out of the car and charged to the top floor of the apartment building taking the stairs as she was unwilling to wait for the elevator.

The apartment building was for graduate students at the University. It was new, just a few years old. It had four levels, with each floor excluding the top level holding four suites. The fourth was reserved for apartments for the resident advisors but only Genevieve’s was occupied at the moment. 

The moment she stepped out of the stairwell, she could felt the residual vibration of magic in the air. As she walked closer to the door of Genevieve’s apartment she placed her hand against it and felt a residual heat which shouldn’t be there, the door was unnaturally hot. 

It was late spring and short of a metal door in the summer, the door was wood and the building was air conditioned so there was no way this door should conducting this much heat short of a fire. She placed her hand on the door knob, it was cool to the touch, and she twisted the knob breaking the lock. 

“Hello, Genevieve. It’s Laura, Laura Hale.” Laura stepped inside the apartment. She shut the door quietly as she surveyed the room. She could still feel the vibration of magic in the air but it as she looked around but nothing in the room read as being powerful enough to invoke that kind of energy. She was about to turn back and wait outside the apartment for Genevieve to return when she spotted a grey t-shirt on the side table. She bent to pick it and sniffed it. It was Derek’s.

She stood up and walked to the bedroom, hoping that she would not catch her brother in the throes of passion with his current crush. It would be just like him to be preoccupied with getting into some girl’s pants while the world went to shit around him. She knew Genevieve and Derek were close, and that her brother had a crush on the emissary. But, she didn’t see Genevieve returning those feelings so she figured it was more than likely that her foolish brother had made an unwarranted move on the emissary and found himself pinned against the wall with magic. 

But, as she opened the closed bedroom door all thoughts of finding her brother tied up by some magical punishment dropped out of her head. Lying back on the bed, side-by-side was her shirtless brother and Genevieve in a black lace bra and yoga pants. But, what both mystified and bothered her more was the fact that they were completely surrounded by a thin veil of energy. 

Well, at least now she knew why she couldn’t feel Derek or why she hadn’t scented him when she walked into the apartment. The energy or whatever it was completely concealing them. She edged forward and went to touch Derek only to be thrown back at against the door the minute she touched the energy. 

“Jesus,” she hissed gasping for air as she slowly rose to her feet shaking off the feeling of being thrown into the wall. Breathing deeply she called on her power as an Alpha, eyes bleeding from green to red she approached the energy field again. This time she made contact with the energy field but within seconds was tossed back into the wall again. 

Groaning she rose to her feet, the red in her eyes receding as she figured out what the problem was. The energy was emitting a signature that she couldn’t breach and rather than kill herself by continuing to get tossed into the wall she pulled out her cell phone and dialed Deaton’s number again.

When he picked up she didn’t wait for him to speak.

“Alan, I found Derek but we have a problem. I’m at Genevieve’s apartment and they are in her bedroom under some sort of energy field that I can’t breach.”

“They’re together? In her bedroom?” He asked incredulously.

“Yes, together, together but I don’t think anything happened. They’re still dressed.” Sort of, she mentally added.

“Okay, the energy field, what did it feel like?”

“What did it feel like? A pain in my ass. I don’t know I don’t really get any feeling from it. Every time I’ve tried to touch it, it repeals me. I can’t get past it Alan. I need help.”

There was silence on the other end of the phone. “I understand,” he finally said. “I‘ll fly out as soon as I can. Just hold tight, Laura.” 

“Thank you.” She looked at her brother’s prone body he looked like he was sleeping. She just wanted so badly to just shake him awake like it was just another day. “Alan? Get here quickly. Whatever this is…it’s what severed my connection to my brother.” Laura hung up her phone and moved look over her brother, her hands curling into fists. She wasn’t going to let anyone take him from her, this was her family, the last of her pack whoever did this was going to have one hell of a fight on their hands. 

Looking around the room she found the only chair in the bedroom and hauled it across the room by the barrier and sat watching over the couple because she knew it would be a while before anyone could be there to help her.

xXx

Alan waited in the private airport for the Alpha come out of plane. After getting off the phone with Laura, the first call he had made was to call her. He knew that if there was something wrong with her daughter Penny would want to be the first to know.

“Alan,” the slim woman said as she came off the few steps of the small plane. Penny hadn’t aged since the last time he’d seen her a few years ago. Although, her once dark brown hair was now liberally streaked with fine sliver locks and a few wrinkles crinkled as she smiled at him opening her arms for a hug. “It’s good to see you.”

“It’s good to see you as well Penny. I trust your flight went well.” Alan said as he eased back and fell into to step with the woman beside him ignoring the two young men that followed them at a distance to his rental car.

“Yes, of course. Let’s leave the pleasantries aside. I need you to tell you to tell me everything that happened between my daughter and Derek Hale.”

“Of course, I’ll fill you in on the way. Do I need to wait for them?” He nodded to the young men behind them. 

“No, it’ll just be us.” Deaton nodded again and climbed into his sedan, Penny followed suit. Within minutes they were off.

xXx

Penny asked Alan a few questions as he drove them to Genevieve’s apartment. But, he didn’t have all the details. She hoped that they weren’t too late. 

Years before her death, Celeste had warned her that the months that Victor had access to Genevieve’s mind had left an indelible mark on her mind and soul. If she ever connected with another wolf the part of her mind that kept all of Victor’s knowledge and secrets could grab hold and overtake her consciousness. Celeste told her that Victor held a lot dangerous information about pack rituals, invocations for power, and blood magic both light and dark. 

Genevieve was powerful in her own right. Very powerful, this was why as a failsafe Celeste had anchored her to Alan to ensure that there was always someone there to keep the balance. It was for that reason she was glad her daughter had chosen another path instead of becoming an emissary. 

Deaton stopped the car and turned it off. “I should warn you, Laura doesn’t know that you’re coming. But, I thought it best to tell her here.”

“Of course, let’s go inside.” Penny said and then got out of the car with Alan following suit. The swiftly entered the building using the code that Genevieve had provided her mother since the building was locked due to the late hour. They took the stairs and came out on the fourth floor. Immediately, they could both feel the residue magic in the air, it was strong and that it still remained several hours later was a cause for concern. 

Alan raised his hand to knock on the door and it opened revealing a petite brunette dressed in jeans and a t-shirt. 

“Oh thank god you’re – who’s she?” Laura Hale said tensing up at the sight of her.

Penny stepped forward. “Allow me to introduce myself, I’m Penny. Penny Morrell, Genevieve’s Mother.”

“You’re an Alpha.” Laura corrected as she stepped back to allow them to enter her daughter’s apartment.

“I’m a mother first. Alan called me because I can help.” Penny said as she heading toward Genevieve’s bedroom. “Has anything changed?”

Laura and Alan followed behind her as she entered the room she could feel the vibration of the energy in the room but she couldn’t sense her daughter at all.

“No, no change,” Laura answered from behind her. 

The couple lay unconscious on the bed. She stepped around the energy not touching it to observe her daughter. She spotted blood on Genevieve’s mouth and Derek’s. “Did you see the blood when you came in?”

“I did.” 

“You didn’t mention the blood when you called me,” Alan added as he walked closer to examine the couple.

“I didn’t think it was important. I thought the energy field that I couldn’t get through was more important.” The young Alpha looked between herself and Alan confused. “Is there something I’m missing here, why does the blood matter?”

Alan held her eyes wanting her approval to tell his charge. Penny nodded. 

“Genevieve has been used before as conduit.”

“Conduit, what does that mean? You said that she was like you, an emissary.” Laura asked confused.

“Genevieve is not an emissary but a powerful Druid. She is a conduit to the old ways; she can call on the power of the gods. If she’s performed a ritual and bound it in blood which means we may not be able to break it.” Alan answered as he examined the energy field running his hands over it. “I can stop this energy field but I’ll need help.”

“But, what about the ritual?” Penny asked as she watched Alan take off his jacket and raise his hands over the energy again.

“When I break the energy cloaking them you should both able to sense them. You can figure out what ritual been used when they wake up. You both need to stand beside them when I break the field connect with them again to ground them.” He directed quietly lowering his hands over the energy field.

Penny watched as Deaton focused his sight on the energy field she could feel the vibration of his magic in the air. It felt like hours but she knew it was mere minutes of as the force is Genevieve’s magic dispersed into nothingness. She reached for Genevieve’s hands immediately and connected to her.

Within seconds, Penny knew what her daughter had done.

“Oh my god,” Laura said as she glanced from her brother to the woman lying beside him on the bed. “It’s a blood bond.”

“Are you certain?” Alan asked.

“Yes,” Penny answered as she breathed in the scent of bonded pair. “They’re bonded but it’s not complete yet.”

“How can you tell?” Laura asked as she ran her hands over her brother’s hair.

“Do you sense my daughter in your link to Derek?” The young Alpha shook her head. “Then, it’s not complete and we might be able to stop it.”

“How? My mother always told me that bonded mates are for life.”

“They are. But, if the bond is never settled and the pair aren’t true mates then distance and time can kill it.” Alan answered. “We must separate them.”

“That may work for her but not my brother. When he wakes up he’ll look for her, he’ll track her and find her.”

“Not if you take the memory,” Penny suggested. “You’re right, if he believes that she’s his mate he’ll find her. But, if you take his memory of today he won’t know.”

“If you do this Laura, know that Derek may not be person he was. He’ll be different,” Alan cautioned.

“Okay, but what if I take the memory and it’s a true bond. What then?”

“If the bond is true, nothing will kill it. We can delay it but minute he senses her, the bond will demand he settle it.” Penny answered. “Genevieve is human and protected so I can’t take her memory, it has to be your choice Laura.”

“Okay,” Laura nodded. “I’m sorry but I can’t lose my brother. I’m going to do it.” Laura stood up rubbing her hands over her face as moved to stand in back of her brother on the other side of the bed. She lifted him slightly, so that his neck was exposed to her. “I’m sorry Derek,” she whispered then stuck her claws into his neck taking his memory.


	11. Chapter Nine

**

Chapter Nine

**

Derek was frozen in stasis between his consciousnesses. He could not see or feel anything, it was all gone … the Betas, his pack … the bond. Genevieve. There was nothing but the darkness and he knew that he would die.

Then, he felt the gentle pressure, the reassuring touch of his mate the outright stubborn strength trying to rein him back, Genevieve. _Derek_ , he heard whispered in the darkness. He strained until he heard it again, _Derek_. 

It was Genevieve she was calling for him. He focused all his energy on hearing her voice calling to him and willing himself to answer to wake up, eyes snapping open he saw her leaning over him with concern etched in her face and her hand over his heart. 

“Derek, are you okay? Can you hear me?”

“Peter,” he stuttered struggling to sit up and protect his mate as he remembered. She helped to ease him up.

“Don’t worry about him right now. He’s gone. ” She waved a hand to someone kneeling on the other side of him.

“Derek, don’t move for a second, you’ll need time to get your bearings. You’re going to be a little weak for several hours.” Deaton added as he checked Derek’s vitals.

“Am I still an Alpha?” Derek asked a few minutes later after he was strong enough to stand on his own without Genevieve’s help but she held onto his arm as though she expected him to fall down any minute. He glanced down at her and squeezed her hand in comfort. “I’m fine.”

“Yes, you’re still an Alpha just not a particularly competent one as usual.” 

“Hey, don’t!” Genevieve snapped as she stepped in between the two men. “Why did you even come?”

Derek frowned wondering why Genevieve was so upset; he grabbed her arm to pull her back beside him. She was usually the calmer one between the two of them. Though, he had to wonder why the vet had come they weren’t friends or even allies by any stretch of imagination. “Why _are_ you helping me?”

“Helping your family used to be a pretty important part of my life. Helping _you_ ,” Deaton said with a nod to Derek. “Is a promise I made to your mother.”

“You’re the one my sister told me about you’re some kind of an advisor.” He glanced down at Genevieve as clarity came over him. “You sent me to Genevieve four years ago.”

Deaton nodded. “I did. Genevieve has always had an affinity for working with juveniles in packs. I thought she could help you however I did not anticipate the bond that would take place, it wasn’t supposed to happen.” The vet gave a well placed nod to Genevieve but she did not respond. 

Derek ignored the nod toward Genevieve, though he could feel the barest tug on the bond that let him know that it upset her, as he glanced toward the hole in floor where Peter had been buried. “Where is he?”

“I don’t know but I do have some advice for you. I need you to listen to me very closely right now. What Peter managed to do doesn’t come without a price. He’s going to be physically weak so he’ll rely on the strength of his intellect. He’s going to come at you Derek, twist his way inside your head and play with your insecurities. He’ll tell you that he’s the only way you can stop Gerard. Do. Not. Trust. Him.”

“I don’t trust anyone,” Derek replied quietly because trust was not something he gave to anyone easily anymore. Kate Argent had taught him that lesson well.

“I know.” Deaton said warily. “If you did you might be the Alpha that you think you are. The one person you should trust doesn’t trust you either.”

“Scott?”

“Yes, he’s with Stilinski right now and you need to find them. Find them as fast as you can. I’ve known Gerard a long time, he has a plan and something tells me that this,” Deaton glanced toward the hole in the floor that Peter had risen out of. “Is playing right into all of it because you’ve placed your trust in the wrong people.”

Derek nodded as he eased away from Genevieve turning to leave when she stepped in his path with remorse written all over her face. He knew then that she knew a hell of a lot more than she’d lead him to believe.

“Derek, whatever you think of me, please, know that I didn’t intentionally keep this from you. You can trust me.”

He clenched his jaw and looked away from her before taking off in a run out of the house. He couldn’t deal with her right now. There were much more important things that needed his attention. First, he would find Scott and then he’d get his answers from Genevieve once and for all.

*

Genevieve watched Derek run away from her and closed her eyes in anger. She turned back to Deaton glaring at the older man.

“Why did you do that?”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“Bullshit!” Genevieve snapped shaking her head. “You know exactly what I mean.”

“You’ve asked me to help to advise him and I did. But, I cannot be his emissary.”

“Then, why are you here?” She yelled not expecting him to answer. “You know what? I don’t care. I’m-I’m done with this. I can’t do it anymore.”

“Do what?”

“I don’t need any more stories about different philosophies or choosing a different path. You’re right you aren’t his emissary. Because his emissary would see the goodness in him, would see that if he had the right information he could be a great Alpha. But, you’re so blind that you won’t see it so just stay out of it! Everything, the pack, Derek, it’s mine now.” 

Resolved in her role now, Genevieve simply walked away feeling a slight weight lifted off her shoulders. Since coming to Beacon Hills she had deferred to Deaton because this was his home and he’d been loyal to Hale Pack for years, decades even. But, if she wanted to take on her role in Derek’s pack she couldn’t allow anyone herself to be ruled by others, it was time that she trusted her own instincts and became what she was always meant to become.

It took her twenty minutes to find her way out of the woods to her car. Once there she contemplated what she needed to do. Derek would be handling whatever it was he needed to do with Scott and Stiles. That would leave the pack unaccounted for. Decision made she started her car and drove home. 

Genevieve left the car running in the driveway as she opened her garage door. She pulled out a tool box she had under a shelf in her garage. She moved several tools out of way until she found the bolt cutters she was looking for, she put them to the side and replaced all the tools in the box sliding it back in place under the shelve. Next, she grabbed the first aid kit she kept in her garage and left. She had barely let the garage door shut before she was back in the car and pulling out of her driveway, heading back to Derek’s warehouse.

When she finally arrived back in the subway car, she saw the Betas were all still unconscious. She quickly cut through the chains and bolts that had each Beta linked to the subway car. While, they were unconscious she cleaned and bandaged their wounds though it occurred to her as she picked up the bandage wrappers that it was probably unnecessary given that they would completely healed in a few hours. But, she needed something to do while she waited for them to wake up. Shaking her head, she returned the bolt cutters to her car.

By the time she returned to the basement of the warehouse, Isaac was stumbling out of the subway car with Erica and Boyd following him. He stopped when he saw her there, causing Erica and Boyd to walk into him. Instantly, she felt a slight pull on the bond reminding her that Isaac had linked to her somehow as he snapped to awareness when he saw her, his mouth dropping open in surprise.

“Ms. Morrell – Genevieve, I-what are you doing here? Where’s Derek?”

“Derek is helping Scott deal with the Kanima. He asked me to release you and send you home.” Genevieve replied hoping that the Beta’s weren’t capable of distinguishing lies yet. As they slowly, fell into step beside each other she watched as they exchanged looks between each other. Isaac and Erica seemed to have no problem with her lie but she could tell that Boyd wasn’t exactly sure of what to make of her yet.

“But, what about Lydia? I saw her come here earlier?” Erica asked as she took in a powerful scent wafting from the guidance counselor. 

“Don’t worry about Lydia. Derek is fine and he wants you all to go home tonight. He’ll call you when he needs you.” Genevieve added with enough confidence that the Betas seem to take that lie a little more easily than her first one. In truth, she had no idea what Derek planned to do but she needed to talk to him and she knew that he was less likely to avoid her if she was waiting for him.

Erica examined her as if she wanted to ask her another question. She opened her mouth to ask and promptly snapped closed as her gaze shot to Isaac with raised brows. Curious, Genevieve thought as she watched Isaac give a minute shake of his head. This pack could give a class in nonverbal communication, but considering who their Alpha was, it really came to no surprise to … anyone really.

“Okay.” Erica gave her a small smile and pulled on Boyd’s arm. “Boyd’ll take me home and stay with Isaac.” She grabbed Isaac’s hand and pulled the both boys along behind her managing to lead them up the stairs out of the warehouse.

Genevieve nodded as she watched them go with a sigh. She walked back to the subway car and stripped off her jacket preparing to wait for Derek so they talk. She wasn’t lying when she talked to Deaton early, she’d made her decision, and the time for keeping secrets was over. She was going to come clean and tell Derek everything.

xXx

“What was that about?” Boyd asked when they were finally outside. “I don’t think she was telling us the truth.”

“She’s different. It was like Derek was there with us but it was coming from her. Whatever happened tonight changed her scent.” Erica said as she contemplated this sudden change biting her lip.

“She’s pack.” Isaac said.

“How’d you know that?” Erica asked curious, Isaac had been suspiciously quiet as they walked along the darken streets.

Isaac’s head popped up surprised. “I don’t know how, but she feels like pack, like us.”

“I wonder if Derek knows.” Erica questioned as the three betas continued to walk home. 

*

Derek felt like a failure. The entire night was an unmitigated disaster and now the Argents had a target on his back and more than likely his pack as well.

He walked down the shallow steps of his temporary home intending to release his pack and send them home before telling them to disappear. Only to his surprise, his betas weren’t waiting for him, it was only Genevieve.

She stood arms crossed leaning against the opening of the subway car. She was no longer wearing the leather jacket he’d seen her in early that night. She had seemingly replaced it with a long-sleeved shirt over the tight jeans and black boots with her hair pulled back into a ponytail.

“What are you doing here?”

“We need to talk.” 

“I think we’ve said all that needs to be said. Where are my betas?”

“I sent them home.” Genevieve added as she dropped her arms and walked down the few steps of the subway car. “Derek, I know that you’re upset but I need to explain. There are things that you need to know. Just give me a chance, please.”

“Do you know that I haven’t lied to you? That I was honest with you from the beginning,” he glanced away from her unable to take the yearning in her eyes. “I trusted you.”

“And you still can,” he felt her come closer grasping his hand and placing it over her chest so he could feel her heartbeat. His eyes flashed to hers. “I didn’t lie to you, I just … I didn’t tell you everything. But, it wasn’t because I didn’t want to, I _couldn’t_. But that’s over. I’ll tell you everything. Anything you want to know, full disclosure.”

“Anything?” He parroted with an arched brow.

“Yes, anything.”

Derek pulled his hand away from hers and turned away from her. He didn’t need to think about it, there were lots things that he wanted to know and if this was the only chance to find out what she had been keeping from him, he would take it. “You and the vet, what exactly is your relationship? How do you know each other?”

“I’ve known Alan my whole life. I think of him as a brother, when I began my training he was my anchor.”

He turned back to stare at her then. “What training? To become an advisor?”

“An Emissary,” Genevieve corrected. 

“What?”

“An Emissary, it’s the proper name for what Alan is—was to the Hale pack. But, no I’m not one.”

“What exactly does an emissary do?”

“You weren’t that far off early when you said that an emissary advises an Alpha. They do that and little more, it’s what Alan did for your mother and your sister. But, I didn’t know that he wasn’t yours when I first came here.”

“How does that make a difference?” Derek asked confused so far she hadn’t really explained anything to him that he could understand.

“It would have to me. Since I’ve been here I’ve deferred to Alan because I thought he was your emissary, guiding you. It’s why I was so upset early because he misrepresented himself to me effectively tying my hands in how much I could reveal to you.”

“You still could have told me the truth regardless of who Deaton is.”

Genevieve moved to plead her case, reaching out to touch him but dropping her hand when he shifted out of her reach. “You have to understand emissaries are supposed to guide and advise an Alpha. With a young Alpha, they are especially important because they can help you find balance in your pack and help you learn how to properly build a pack. I didn’t want to lie to you. But, Alan was the Hale Pack emissary so I couldn’t go against him no matter how much I wanted to. I didn’t want to be cause for chaos and turmoil within your pack. Emissaries are outside the hierarchy of the pack and technically I didn’t have any rights to engage you or the pack. Outside of our bond, I didn’t feel that it would be appropriate to disregard his direction.”

”So you’re not an emissary?” He asked again thinking it would have been nice to have someone to ask questions and talk to when he began building his pack rather than having to solely rely on his knowledge gleamed from memories of family.

“No, for all intents and purposes I’m just a guidance counselor who happens to be a practicing Druid. I do and have worked with packs in the past but never in the capacity as an emissary.” 

“What’s the difference if you are doing the same job either as an advisor, which you say you are or an emissary? What’s so important about being one?”

“You have to understand, I begin training to be emissary as soon as I was old enough to read. On my father’s side of the family, it’s considered a great honor to be chosen as an emissary.”

“And your mother’s?”

“My mother, well when she was human her family never knew anything about this world.”

“She’s not … human?” Derek asked surprised. 

“No,” Genevieve paused as Derek’s brows rose in expectation. “She’s an Alpha.”

“You’re the daughter of an Alpha and you never thought to tell me?” Derek asked his mind running through all the protocols that should have been observed with the daughter of an Alpha in his territory.

“In the grand scheme of things it didn’t seem important since I’m not a part of her pack and haven’t been for years.”

He could hear a lie in her words and felt the slightest tug on the bond that let him she was holding something back from him. It wasn’t a full lie but it wasn’t the truth either—again a technicality. “What aren’t you telling me?” He growled.

“What?”

“I want to know what you’re not telling me. You forget, I was raised in a pack too Genevieve. And I find it hard to believe that you learned of an old ritual that is long considered dead by most packs in your training as an emissary.”

“So this is about the bond?”

“Yes. How did you know about it? How did you know what to do to initiate it?”

“That’s a little more difficult to explain.”

“Try. By your own admission, emissaries are supposed to be outside pack hierarchy. But, a blood bond, for a human to initiate it requires a certain ritual to be performed and invocations that I didn’t even know before. So how did you know _exactly_ what do and say to initiate the bond?”

Genevieve hesitated before responding quietly. “My mother is a made werewolf not natural born like you. She was attacked and bitten. And the Alpha who bit her told me about ritual, amongst many other things, after tormenting me months before I desiccated his body and burned it to ash.”

“You killed an Alpha!” Derek exclaimed intrigued because Genevieve was slight at best. That she could take down an Alpha shocked him.

“No,” Genevieve replied quietly as she wrapped her arms around herself. “I killed a phantom.” She met his eyes with a resolve that he’d never seen in her before. “Just as I imagine Peter was before he managed to get Lydia to resurrect him.”

Derek stepped closer as watched as a far away gleam appeared in her brown eyes. “It’s happened before?”

“Yes, but it’s extremely dangerous to the wolf who tries it.”

“Why?”

“Self-regeneration from a death requires the use of magic, blood magic.”

“Like our bond?”

“In some ways yes, but our bond is pure, bounded by blood given freely. What Peter did, requires a sacrifice of blood. My mother was bitten when she was pregnant with me. The Alpha who bit her was captured and killed. He died a true death. But, he had been studying in the Druid rituals and incantations for years and he managed to bind his spirit to me before he died. I’ve always had a sense that there was someone else around me but I didn’t think anything of it until the year I turned sixteen. I started having dreams of home, the woods, and hunts in the forest with the pack.”

“Was that all?”

“No, the closer I got to my birthday the more vivid the dreams became and then his memories started coming to me. I could recall conversations with pack members that I never talked to and things about them that I shouldn’t have known. Then, the accidents started.”

“Accidents?” 

“The senior pack members, the ones who were alive to put him down started have little _accidents_ putting them in comas. They would go to woods for run, we assumed, and turn up unconscious at a camp ground site, until only one wolf remained.”

“Your mother,” Derek guessed.

“Yes, funny thing about regeneration that with all of his teachings he never understood. Binding yourself to someone opens a two-way door that allows power and knowledge to be shared between two entities. It took years for him to become more dominant and take over. But, when you do that it strips away the essence of who you are leaving an empty shell. He was in control of my mind and body and for months.”

Derek saw the light come back in her eyes as she met his gaze finally. “How did you break it? His hold over you?” 

“Regeneration takes blood to solidify the body. But, someone like me well my blood is a little different and it take a wolf to make a wolf. When my blood didn’t work after the sacrifices he used my mother, her blood was close to mine and she was an Alpha. Unfortunately, that’s why his hold on me snapped. We were at the camp ground where he died and I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t kill my mother. So I … I broke free and killed him.”

“You make it sound so easy.”

Genevieve gave him a sad smile. “It wasn’t. Afterwards, the pack … they were scared of me. People I had known my entire life feared me so I went to live with my great-grandmother. I couldn’t escape what I done, I still can’t but my grandmother helped me to find my calling in her pack with the juveniles. The adults may have feared me and what I could do but the children, juveniles never did.”

“Is that why you never became an emissary?”

“No. When you become an emissary you take an oath to the Alpha and the pack. After what happened, I _couldn’t_ do that. I couldn’t open myself up to another Alpha or any other werewolf in that way.” 

“Then, how did the bond happen? I couldn’t have been the first wolf you were attracted to.” Derek scoffed remembering the few boyfriends that she’d had when they were seeing each other.

“You weren’t,” she replied stepping closer to him. “But, you were the first one, the only werewolf that I opened myself up to.” 

“What about the dreams? Shouldn’t you have known what was coming when they started the first time?”

“The dreams were very different before. I didn’t see your memories I thought they were a symptom of something else. Look, my dreams aren’t prophetic; sometimes a dream is just a dream.”

“Then, what was is about me that made you initiate the bond?”

“You know Derek there aren’t a lot of people like us, people who know what it’s like to carry the weight of someone else’s death around your neck. People who can’t understand how that weighs you down until you can’t see where it ends and you begin. At first, I saw myself in you and I thought that I could help you lift off that weight. After a while, I realized that instead of just helping you, I was helping me too. We became friends, _real_ friends. You were someone that I didn’t have to lie to and I didn’t have that before for years since I stayed away from the packs. I was attracted to you and when I realized that you had feelings for me, I should have shut it down, but I didn’t because I didn’t want to lose what we had.” She took a step closer to him. “I wanted you, so I did something that that I very rarely do, I let go.”

“Let go of what?” Derek asked quietly as she continued to walk toward him hips swaying seductively until she stood directly in front of him. 

“Control,” Genevieve answered as she raised her hands in front of her and held them up so the sliver sparks crackling with energy. She stared at her hands and then into his bright green eyes widen in surprise. “I am a very powerful person, when I want to be. I keep it inside, tightly leashed so it never comes out.” The sliver sparks receded to nothingness as she lowered her hands maintaining eye contact with him. “That day I wanted to know what it felt like to be free just once without all my baggage. So I invited you up to my apartment and I let you make the first move, I didn’t stop you. But, I forgot it’s not just my power that I keep leashed but my darkest wants and desires too.”

“Like what?”

“I could never admit that I missed belonging to something, that I missed being part of a pack. I could never go home; they fear me and would never trust me again to this day. But, you didn’t. You trusted me and I wanted to belong to something that no one else could touch or take away from me. I wanted it so badly that I starting the invocations without thinking.” She raised her hands to frame his face as he peered down at his eyes swirling with a mix of emotions. “I wanted you,” she caressed his jaw. “I still do.”

Derek took a deep breath as he leaned into her caress with his eyes shuttering close. He felt the quite hum of the bond snap to life as though on fire as he could feel the truth in what she said. Before it faded, he opened his eyes putting his hands over hers to pull them away.

“I understand why you did what you did but this bond should have remained closed. I never should have re-ignited it.”

“Derek,” she said pleadingly he watched as she eyes filled with unshed tears. “Please.”

“No, you need to stay away from me and leave town. I won’t have your death on hands, too.” Derek added dropping her hands as he turned away intent on leaving.

“No,” Genevieve called out as she walked behind grabbing his arm forcing him to turn around. “I am not leaving this town until I finished what I started and I won’t leave without you.”

“You don’t get it!” Derek yelled as he turned around to face her. “The vet was right. I’m not a good Alpha. I couldn’t stop it. I can’t stop the kanima. Tonight while I lay on the floor unable to move, he massacred the entire Sheriff’s Department. Scott is working with Gerard Argent to do god knows what. Now, Peter is back, I don’t know how strong he is or what he’s going to do. There’s too much, no matter what I do, I can’t be everywhere. And … I can’t have your death on hands because I can’t protect you.”

“I didn’t ask for your protection,” she yelled back at him breathing deeply. “I didn’t tell you everything I did out of some plea to make you think that I’m some weak little girl who needs you to save me. I don’t. I never did I can protect myself and I don’t run at the first sign of trouble!”

“You did before.” 

“I wasn’t ready then. But, I am now and more importantly I can help you.”

“No, I don’t want your help and I don’t want this bond.” 

“Lying is beneath you Derek. You _pursued_ me to re-ignite this bond. I can feel how much you want it.” She shifted until there was no space between pressing her breasts into his chest as she leaned into him. “You want time, I’ll give you time. You can have one week.” She pushed away from him and walked back to grab her leather jacket pulling it on.

“A week for what?”

“To figure things out,” she replied as she pulled her hair from beneath the collar and stalked back toward him. “But, be warned Derek I have no intention of running away or sitting idly by. I’ll be back and when I do come back I want you, our bond, and the pack in that order. And I will do what I think is necessary to make that happen.” She leaned up and pressed a kiss on his jaw.

“Genevieve,” Derek said grabbing her hand before she walked away. “You can’t force the bond.”

“Oh, I know but we both know I won’t have to. We’ve managed to keep it alive for four years somehow, I’m not worried about a week. I’ll see you soon.” And with that Genevieve took her leave.


	12. Chapter Ten

**Chapter Ten**

One Week Later

Sometimes, his Betas forgot that they were werewolves. They forgot that along with strength and quick healing abilities, their hearing had sharpened as well. But, being a born werewolf Derek never forgot. Though his back was turned and his attention was on the box of partially burned books that he was currently searching, his ears were pricked as he listened to the ongoing debate amongst his Betas. They wanted to leave Beacon Hills. Specifically, Erica and Boyd wanted to leave but Isaac was undecided. They had been discussing this for the last few days every since they’d had to leave their homes to protect themselves from the Argents who were out for their hides now that Victoria Argent had died. 

Derek didn’t want to leave Beacon Hills. Especially, not with a kanima that he had unknowingly created when he bit Jackson all those months ago. No, he wouldn’t leave Beacon Hills until he’d cleaned up his mess. Not to mention, he had no intention of leaving his mate behind. If he left Beacon Hills, then Genevieve would be by his side. 

Genevieve. 

He hadn’t seen her in a week. Just as she’d promised before she had not seeked him out. Leaving him and his pack alone but Derek did check up on her. Watching her arrive and leave the high school from the woods by the school. He’d even slipped into her house a few nights before to ensure that she was sleeping well. He was sure that she could sense his presence when he was near but he didn’t care. The truth was for as angry and scared, as he’d been the week before; she was right when she said that their bond wouldn’t be over. And eventually, when everything was calm again, they would seal it. 

It was for those reasons that Derek had brought the pack to his old house to search through the remains of the old books that his family had left after the fire. He and Laura had taken the books that hadn’t been burned six years ago but he’d already searched through them and found nothing. That left the few that were partially damaged. Frankly, going through the books reminded him of his years at undergrad doing research for whatever paper he had due. It reminded him of Laura’s constant teasing when she found him asleep at the kitchen with the pages of the book imprinted on his face. Thinking about his dead sister reminded that he hadn’t seen Peter either. 

But, the thoughts of Peter and Laura slipped from his mind as he recognized the scent of his pack approaching behind him. They’d made their decision. Being in hiding had taken its toll on them. They were scared and restless. As their Alpha, it was his responsibility to put them at ease. And if he couldn’t then they would leave. The question was could he find the words to make them stay.

*

Genevieve had a busy week. Between the situation with Matt dying and his attack on the Sheriff’s Department she had students in and out of her office all week. Now that she was resolute in what she wanted her role to be with Derek as his mate and possibly become his emissary she needed to know how it would work. So she had been burning the midnight oil at both ends by talking to pack elders and emissaries from all the major territories for the last week. 

In thinking about her discussion with Derek the previous week she knew that although he might cover it well, he needed help. Specifically, he needed an emissary to help and guide him become the great Alpha she knew he could be. 

Trust was the cornerstone for any emissary/Alpha relationship to work; both parties had to trust one another. Derek didn’t trust anyone easily for obvious reasons given his past with Kate Argent. But, he had trusted her. And while he may have been hurt that she didn’t share all the details of her past with him, she knew that at the end of the day, he would always trust her. 

For that reason, Genevieve had waited until she had all the information she needed before making this much need visit to the Beacon Hills Animal Clinic during her lunch hour. She walked into the clinic and headed straight back to Deaton’s office. The door was open so she knocked on the frame. 

“Alan, do you have a moment?”

Deaton glanced up from the file he was reviewing with surprise written all over his face. “Genevieve, of course, take a seat.” He closed the file and gestured toward the chair in front of his desk.

“I’d rather stand, this won’t take long.” Genevieve said as she moved to stand behind the chair.

“Sure. To what do I owe the honor of this visit?”

“I thought that we should talk. To clear the air so that there would be no more misunderstandings.”

“Misunderstandings?” Deaton leaned back in his chair with a raised brow. “Misunderstandings about what exactly?”

“About us… or more specifically our roles in relationship to the Hale Pack. I made a few calls— several actually— just to be clear. It would appear I am not the first emissary to find herself mated to the Alpha of a pack. More importantly, as the Mate to the Alpha the lines of authority are quite clear.”

“Meaning what?”

“Meaning that sealed bond or not, I am still the Alpha’s mate and my actions are outside of your jurisdiction. Emissaries are not to interfere in pack business unless solicited for guidance. You had no right to tell me what I could or could not do with regards to my pack.” Deaton slowly sat up straight. “As an emissary you are supposed to offer guidance, however I can’t say that you have ever provided anything more than criticism. And even more it really was no help to the pack at all.”

“I don’t think I like your tone or implication that goes with it.”

“I am not implying anything. I am telling you. You took a blood oath to be the Emissary to the Hale Pack. And based on what I’ve seen here you’ve been negligent in your duties.”

“How have I been negligent in my duties?” Deaton stood up. “My duty as an emissary is to advise the Alpha, however it’s not my fault if he refuses to take it or that continues to make the same mistakes.”

“The sole advice you’ve offered to Derek is to trust Scott McCall and help him get rid of the kanima—,”

“And if he had taken my advice then he and Scott could have dealt with Gerard together. It didn’t work. So now Scott and I will have to rely on an alternative solution to solve the problem.”

“Do you even hear yourself? You and Scott. Scott McCall is neither an Alpha nor part of the Hale pack and you’ve given him more guidance then you’ve ever given to Derek.”

“Scott McCall is a young wolf who needs help and I will do what I have to do help him.”

“I’m not asking you not to help him. What I want from you is simple Alan.”

“And what is that, Genevieve?”

“You can help Scott. I won’t stop you. But you will not help Scott at the detriment of my pack.” She turned and walked to the door pausing just outside the doorway. “Oh, I almost forgot, I called Alastair.”

“Why?”

“Why did I call Alastair? The role of emissary for the Hale pack seems to open. This young pack is in need of a person who seeks to aid and strengthen without allowing their own bias to come before that. I accepted my role in this pack and its time you accepted yours. My pack needs an emissary and you can’t do it so I’ll find someone who can.”

“Now, wait a minute. I’ve been an emissary longer than Derek has even been alive.” Deaton protested.

“Do you think this is how I wanted this to be? It’s not. I have to do what’s best for my pack now. If you won’t help _this_ pack strengthen for the future, then you are of no uses to any of us. Consider your plan with Scott as your last official duty as the Hale Pack Emissary. Your blood oath to the Hales has been absolved.” She turned then and left the clinic. 

Walking back to her car, Genevieve was oblivious to her surroundings. She slid behind the wheel of her car pounding her hand against the wheel in frustration. She hadn’t wanted it to go this way. Alan had been her mentor, her training partner since she was child. And now she had taken away the position that he had held for decades. But, after consulting with Alastair, her great-grandmother’s second, about Alan status, she knew he’d left her no choice. 

She put her key back in the ignition getting ready to start the car, when Isaac popped up in the back seat. “Jesus, Isaac you just about gave me a heart attack.”

“Sorry,” he replied ducking his head down with a brief grin. “I thought you knew I was here.”

“My mind was elsewhere. So where have you been?” Genevieve said with a small smile as stared at Isaac through her rearview mirror. She instantly felt a reassuring tug on the bond that let her know that he was okay. She had been concerned with the pack had disappeared overnight. But, she knew that they would be safe with Derek so she’d left it alone for the moment. 

“With Derek, we’ve been at his old house for the last couple of days. He’s looking for something.”

“Are you staying safe? No one’s hurt right?” 

“No, we’re fine.”

“When are you planning to re-surface? I’m sure that I don’t have to tell you that a lot of people are concerned. Erica and Vernon’s parents have both been to see me.”

Isaac shrugged, “we-they want to leave.”

“And go where?”

Again Isaac shrugged as he looked down at his hands. “Find another pack … another Alpha.”

“I see. And what do you want?”

“We’re pack and Derek is our Alpha,” Isaac replied looking up and meeting Genevieve’s eyes in the mirror. She read the confusion in his gaze easily. 

“You know being pack doesn’t mean you give blind allegiance to your Alpha—,”

Isaac snorted. “I know the Derek’s not the best Alpha but I don’t know that I want to run away to find someone better. Or find another pack hoping it will be different when it could be worse. It can always be worse.”

“Or things can get better, _if_ you give him a chance. You know without the kanima and Argents out for blood, I think—no, I know Derek can be better, more stable. Things are tense, now but when they calm down things will change for the better.”

“That would be nice,” Isaac scoffed.

Genevieve smiled and turned on her car glancing at the clock she noticed she needed to get back to work. She had yet another counseling session. “I’m going back to school. I have a meeting. Do you want a ride?”

“I’ll just get out here. I just wanted to let you know what was going on.” He reached for the car door.

“Isaac,” she called just as he was about to get out. “I’m not going tell you what I think you should do because it needs to be your choice. But, Derek picked you for a reason and I think it would be shame for you to leave before you found out why. And I promise that it will get better.”

Isaac nodded awkwardly and then ran out of the car. When he disappeared from her sight, she pulled the car out of the parking lot.

*

Derek brought up the last box of books and set them on the table. So far his search had been fruitless. There was no information referencing kanimas anywhere in the Hale family books. He was just pulling out another book, when he heard her walk into the house.

“I thought we agreed that you would stay out of sight,” Derek said as he dropped the book back in the box and turned to see his mate standing in the arch way of his house. He took in the sight of her in dark jeans, with a black leather jacket snug on her petite frame and black riding boots. Her long black hair laying on her shoulders with a solemn smile.

“Funny, that’s not exactly how I remember the conversation going. I recall telling you I’d give you a week to get things settled. From what I can tell you’ve done the exact opposite of that.”

Derek sighed quietly but made no move to invite her in so Genevieve walked into the half burnt space with her hands in the pockets of her jacket. “How did you find me?”

“I had a little visit a couple of hours ago. And seeing as only one member of your pack can find me, who do you think?”

“Isaac,” he guessed.

“Got it in one, he told me that Boyd and Erica were thinking about leaving.”

“They aren’t thinking about it anymore.”

“You just let them go?” Genevieve asked surprised. “Do you think that’s wise?” 

“It’s better than having members of a pack who don’t want to be here.” Derek answered crossing his arms defensively.

“They’re kids Derek, scared and unsure. They didn’t leave because they didn’t want to be here. They want you to reassure them. You and I,” she gestured between the two of them. “We were born in this world so we understand the dangers around it but they don’t. They want you to reassure them. Why do you think they came to you first before they ran off? They wanted you to stop them.” She stopped before him peering up at him from beneath long lashes. She placed her hand on his forearm.

Instantly, he felt her touch reverberate through his body, as his senses identified her as his mate. Derek closed his eyes and felt the tension slow leave his body. His forest green eyes flashed open staring the warm glow of her brown eyes. “How do you know that?”

Genevieve smiled as she shifted closer to him. “I’m good at my job. And I know kids, teenagers. They want your reassurance and your trust and they will follow you anywhere. They’ll be loyal but that won’t be given blindly just because you’re their Alpha. It’s give and take; they’ll only give so much if they don’t receive anything in return.”

“I’ll take that under advisement. Is that why you came here?”

“No, actually I came to talk to you about something else. I made some calls, how would you feel about getting an emissary?”

Derek arched his brow in confusion. “I thought that the vet was my emissary.”

“No, he’s not.”

“Then, why can’t it be you?”

“I thought about that. But, an emissary should give impartial guidance. And as much as I believe I could. I think it would be better if someone else served in that role.”

Derek shrugged. “If you think I need one, then do what you need to do. But, I don’t know how I feel about someone else coming here.”

“It would be someone that I trust.” She offered. 

“Fine. Now, I think it’s time that you go. I don’t want you to get tracked by the Argents with Gerard in control of the kanima.”

“You mean Jackson.”

“Same difference.”

“It’s not the same but I’m not going to argue. I’ve been careful. I’m not even on Gerard’s radar anymore since I don’t have any sessions with Lydia. Speaking of her, have you seen Peter?”

“No, he’s been suspiciously quiet and out of sight.”

Genevieve pulled back slight from Derek. “That’s not good. Have you tried to find him?”

“Nope,” Derek replied as he gestured toward the boxes of books on the table spread out across the room. “I’ve been busy. I assume that Peter will eventually pop up.”

“That’s what I’m worried about,” Genevieve started when the sound of footsteps gave her pause.

“Aww, that’s delightful. Worried about little ole me. I don’t know whether to be flattered or scared.” Peter said as he stepped into archway across from Derek and Genevieve.

“Speak of the devil,” Genevieve muttered under her breath.

Peter inclined his head to side and sniffed the air. “If I didn’t know any better I’d say you weren’t happy to see your dear ole’ Uncle. Considering, that were all family now, I’m hurt. I truly am my dear sweet _niece_.”

Genevieve rolled her eyes ignoring Peter as she returned her attention to Derek. “I’m leaving.” She leaned up and kissed him on the lips. “Call me when you’ve found something.”

Derek nodded not taking his eyes off of Genevieve as walked across the room. He held back a smile of amusement as she flicked a tendril of electricity at Peter who instantly fell to his knees in pain as she left. He watched as Peter slowly rose to his feet shaking off the shock as he went. “What do you want Peter?”

“You certainly know how to pick them.” 

Derek rolled his eyes and went back looking at the books studiously ignoring Peter. 

“How inconsiderate. Really, after I came all this way, just to help you solve all of your problems, Derek. You should be happy to have me after all we’re blood unlike that little witch you’ve mated to.”

Without thinking Derek turned and slammed his fist into Peter’s face sending him flying back. His nostrils flaring as his eyes bled to red. “She’s more family than you’ll ever be.”


	13. Chapter Eleven

**

Chapter Eleven

**

Genevieve rang the doorbell of the Martin home and stepped back to wait. The house was in a fairly nice part Beacon Hills but not nearly as affluent as she had expected. Still she half expected a butler or maid to answer the door just from what she knew of the prominent family. But, to her surprise Lydia opened the door.

“Ms. Morrell. I wasn’t aware that guidance counselor’s made house calls.” Lydia said with a fine arched brow.

“They don’t, normally. But, then I’m not exactly a normal guidance counselor which I’m sure you already knew.”

“I suspected.” Lydia inclined her head to side with a slight frown. “So why are you here? I sincerely hope this isn’t some seedy, secret crush, because you’re really not my type.”

Genevieve bit back a smirk; she had to admit the girl had some grit. “No, it’s not. I came here to talk to you about Peter Hale. Don’t trust him.” All of Lydia’s bravado disappeared at the mention of his name, as her eyes widen and she swallowed nervously. “And since we’re being honest, let’s not pretend that you don’t know what I’m talking about.”

“I didn’t intend to bring him back. He just-he wouldn’t leave me alone. He wouldn’t go away. But, he promised if I helped that it would be over.”

“Did he keep his promise?” Lydia nodded slowly.

“I haven’t seen him.”

“Look, I’m going to level with you, Lydia. Peter Hale is a manipulative liar that will tell you whatever he needs to use you. You’re a very smart girl, so I’m sure you know that he chose you for a reason. I can help you ensure that he never gains a hold over you ever again. But, it has to be your choice to seek the help.” Genevieve pulled a card out of her pocket and handed it to the redhead. “Call me when you’ve decided to stop being a victim.” 

Lydia took the card in her hands and watched as the guidance counselor left.

*

When Genevieve finally returned home, having decided to forego the Lacrosse finals in play at the school, she pulled out the box of files and journals that she’d received from the pack elders. The box had been delivered earlier that day and she didn’t have any time to look at them before she went to talk to Derek. 

But, after fixing herself a quick a light dinner she began reviewing the journals. The first few that she skimmed through did not mention a kanima at all. In fact, the majority of the journals merely covered pack interactions amongst neighboring territories. While, not exactly what she was looking for they gave her insight in how she could help resolve some of Derek’s problems. Namely, how she could deal with Argents.

She was so immersed in the journal that when the doorbell rang, she was startled.

She glanced at her watch and noted that it was only a little after eight. Derek wouldn’t bother with the doorbell when he had a key. Not to mention that she couldn’t sense him or any of the pack. She placed the journal that she’d been reading back in the box and covered it before going to answer her door.

“Alan, I wasn’t expecting to see you.” She said genuinely surprised to find the other man on her doorstep. 

“I know but I’ve thinking about what you said all day. I couldn’t get it out of my head.”

“I’m sorry.”

“No, I’m the one who should be sorry. I talked to Alastair … I realized that there were some truths in your accusations early that I wasn’t willing to see before. May I come in?”

“Oh, uh yeah,” Genevieve said shaking her head as she stepped back to let the older man into her house. He walked in and led the way to her living room, standing just beyond her table with his hands clasped in front of him. “Please sit,” she gestured toward the chair across from her as she took a seat.

Deaton gave a small nod as he moved to sit down, rubbing his hands on his pants legs. “Thank you. This isn’t easy. But, after talking with Alastair I realized that I owed you an explanation. It may not change your opinion of how I’ve handled things but I want you to know to understand that my actions were not meant to cause harm. I’ve known the Hales for a very long time; Talia was my oldest and dearest friend. When she became an Alpha she asked me to serve as her emissary and I couldn’t deny her that.”

“You loved her?”

“Yes, like a sister. Just as I care for you,” Deaton clarified. “Of all her children, Derek was the only one who took after her. We were good friends. I’d heard rumors that something big was going to happen but I never expected the fire or that Kate Argent would ensure that they couldn’t get out. A crime that heinous goes against the code that every hunter I’ve ever met holds dear. I said nothing to Talia – I didn’t warn her and in an instant she was gone.”

“And all that was left were Derek, Laura, and Peter.” Genevieve concluded quietly.

“Exactly, I failed. In all my years of service to Talia, when it counted…when it really mattered I couldn’t save her. Four years ago, Laura came to me because she was afraid of losing Derek and couldn’t help her. I wanted to but every time I looked at him all I saw was my failure to his mother.”

“Alan, you made a logical judgment call. There’s nothing to prove. If we report every little rumor we hear we’d never get anything done. Kate Argent and her entire family don’t live by the code. There is no guarantee that your warning would have saved anyone. She would have found another way. You have to stop living in the past and allowing it to rule you. We aren’t perfect, we all make mistakes. I didn’t want to release you, but I felt like I didn’t have choice.” 

Deaton nodded in agreement. “I understand why you made the decision that you did. But, I’d still like to help if I can until you find a replacement.”

Genevieve nodded. “I’d like that.”

“Good, now if my plan with Scott works as it should, it will take care of Gerard. That leaves the Alpha Pack as a concern. Is Derek prepared for their arrival?”

“Not really. He’s been too concerned on trying to contain the kanima issue first. We haven’t even broached their arrival yet. As soon as everything is over I was going to talk to him about it. They’re too dangerous not to prepare for and with Peter here … it complicates things. He’s a loose cannon that we don’t need. Not to mention that we cannot trust him. His actions to retain a hold on this plain are proof of that.”

“On that we are both in agreement; we cannot afford to overlook him. Especially, since he has an agenda that we don’t know about. We need to neutralize him as soon as possible.”

Genevieve sighed as she tugged her leg under her. “I tried early with Lydia. But, she’s scared and doesn’t know what to do or who to trust. And Derek,” she paused shaking her head. “Peter is the last link to his family. He may not trust him but he won’t kill again. Last time, it had to have been a fluke because Laura’s death was still fresh in his mind.”

“There is something else that I noticed that may help you, if you are open to a suggestion,” Deaton paused as he waited for Genevieve to give an indication that she would be receptive to an idea.

“Of course, anything you can suggest would be great.”

“I believe that Peter knows more about emissaries and you in particular then he let on.”

“How?”

“I’m not sure. But, the point is that he knows how powerful you are. You need to take a hard line with him. Has the bond been cemented?”

“No, not yet but it will be. Why?”

“You’re Derek’s mate by blood and rite; it means that you can tap into the power of the Alpha. You need to make him yield to you.”

“I can do that?” She asked incredulously as she considered the power that she would have to bend the other Alpha to her will. 

“If your bond is a strong as I believe it is, then yes, you can.”

“Well, that just leaves one problem, the pack. Erica and Boyd were thinking about leaving and Isaac, too. I talked to Derek about getting them to stay but I don’t know if it worked.”

“I don’t know about Erica and Boyd but I spoke to Isaac today. I believe that Scott and I may have given him a reason to stay. If Derek is dealing with Gerard, then there’s nothing he can do about Erica and Boyd. Is there any way you can find them before they leave you can’t have the pack strength depleted before the Alphas get here.”

Genevieve contemplated her options. She could call Derek and ask him to help her find Boyd and Erica. No, she couldn’t do that. If she was going to accept her place in this pack then that meant she needed to rely on herself to find them. “Okay,” she said standing up. She pulled her hair into a ponytail and secured it with the band on her wrist.

“Okay, what?” Deaton asked as he too stood up and watched her pull on her leather boots. 

“I’m going to track them and bring them back.”

“How?” Deaton asked as he followed down the hallway to her closet where she pulled out her leather jacket.

“I’m … not really sure. But, I have an idea, something I can try.”

“But, what if they don’t want to return?”

“I’ll worry about that once I find them.” Deaton’s cell began to ring and he answered it as she gathered her car keys as she waited for him to finish the call. “What’s wrong?”

Deaton hung up the phone. “That was Scott, I need to go. But, we’ll talk later.”

“Of course,” Genevieve said as she followed Deaton out of her house and locked her door before heading to her own car. She started her car and pulled out of her driveway and onto the road. 

*

Ten minutes later, she was driving aimlessly around Beacon Hills trying to think of where she should start looking. She spotted someone walking down the street a head of her in a uniform. It looked familiar but she couldn’t figure out why until she passed him by. 

Her car screeched to a stop as she immediately turned the car around as she rolled down her window. “Stiles?” She called out and he paused to glance over at the car.

“Uh, Ms. Morrell.” He looked around. “Wha-what are you doing here?”

“I’m driving in my car. Can I give you a ride somewhere?”

“Hm, no I think I’ll walk.”

“Let me rephrase that, Stiles get in the car.” He sighed but walked around to the other side and got into the car, pulling on his seatbelt. 

“Do you need directions?” He asked quietly as she started driving again.

“Nope, I make it a point to know where the Sheriff lives in a small town like this. So do you want to tell me why you’re walking home in your Lacrosse uniform? I thought you had a game tonight.”

“We did and we won.” Stiles said keeping his gaze focused on the window. 

“Oh, well congratulations.”

“I even made the winning shot. Normally, in that case, I wouldn’t mind being hoisted off the field, but of course, I get to be the lucky teen that gets hoisted off by a geriatric gun toting kidnap-ping—” he paused mouth snapping close as if he’d revealed more than he intended to. He cleared his throat and added, “I probably shouldn’t have said that. Can you just un-hear that last part. This has kind of been a bad week and I may have missed my meds. The important part to remember is I scored the winning shot. Yay me!”

Genevieve spared a glance at his bruised face and decided to take pity on him…for now. “Well, it can’t be that bad if you won the game. In light of all the tragedies that you’ve have the misfortune to witness lately, you should celebrate the small victories. Enjoy the chance to be normal because in this town with werewolves and kanimas at every corner those chances won’t come around often.”

“Yeah, normal…uh right.” He winced scratching his head.

She just shook her head. She’d tried, but the kid was right the Sheriff’s son did have a penchant for trouble so she didn’t bother correcting him as she pulled into his driveway.

Stiles turned his gaze to her in surprise as she came to a stop outside his house. “So is this the part when you tell me that you really not a guidance counselor? I know you’re Derek’s mate—are you a werewolf, too?”

“No, I’m not a werewolf and yes I really am a guidance counselor. It’s just sometimes I advise _others_ as well.”

“And by _others_ you mean werewolves, like Derek?” Genevieve nodded with a small smile. “But, you’re human … I mean you are human, right?”

“Yes, I’m as human as you are. In fact, I’ve wanted to talk to you for a while Stiles.”

“Why? There’s nothing special about me.”

“On the contrary, Stiles, you are very special. You were there for Scott from the beginning even knowing the dangers that you put yourself in to help him you do it without fail. Do you know what that makes you Stiles?”

“Stupid,” Stiles scoffed looking away.

“Some might say that yes, but it also makes you brave. Scott has enhanced abilities due to him being a werewolf, but you; you fight back even when you don’t have to.” When the teen opened his mouth to comment she thwarted him with a hand in the air to let her continue. “I have a proposition for you, something I want you to consider. I think you are very talented Stiles and it would be a shame for that talent to go to waste. I’d like to teach you ways that you can protect yourself.”

Stiles seemed to consider the proposition for a moment before moving to open the car door. “Can I think about it?”

“Yes, of course. I didn’t expect a decision right now.”

Stiles nodded and got out of the car. He was just about to close the door but bent down before it closed. “Were you looking for Erica and Boyd?”

“Yes, I was actually. How did you know?”

Stiles snorted. “I may not know exactly what’s going on with you and Derek but every time I’ve seen you outside of school it has something to do with the pack.”

“Did anyone ever tell you that you’re very observant?”

“Yeah, I get that a lot. It’s the gift of being the son of the local sheriff, or it could be ADHD but what the hey.” He said before turning serious. “You should try the Argents. That’s where they were the last time I saw them.”

“Thank you Stiles.” He nodded and shut the door before walking up the path to his house.

*

Genevieve searched the woods for nearly an hour after leaving the Argents where no one was at home. She used her guts and renewed senses to lead her when she entered the woods with only a flashlight guiding her. 

As she stepped around another tree she felt the slight presence of others within her bond. It made her stop in her tracks and turn around going in the opposite direction. It was the slightest of touches in her bond that reminded her of the feeling whenever Isaac was near. She paused at the proverbial fork in the clearing as the link suddenly flickered away. 

“Shit,” she swore and tried to think of what to do. The idea suddenly came to her she could trace them. Taking a deep cleansing breath, she closed her eyes and pictured Derek in her mind feeling the vibrant connection to him. She focused her attention on links attached to him, the pack. She saw a tenuous link to Peter that shimmer into place unlike any of the others. Releasing her breath, she examined the remaining links; she saw the connection with Isaac that was linked to both of them, then the links to Boyd and Erica. Her eyes flashed open and immediately the bond flickered back to life like a beacon of light. 

It took another twenty minute but she soon came upon the runaways hiding behind a tree. It occurred to her as she approached them that they were injured but she didn’t see how or where. She felt anger that someone would injure Boyd and Erica. Werewolves or not they were just kids.

With a word Boyd spun away from tree, growling as he grabbed Genevieve with his claws and threw her up against the tree. “What do you want? Why are you following us?” His eyes were glowing, bright yellow as he growled at her. The impact of hitting the tree caused her to drop the flashlight and knock the breath out of her.

Erica stood slightly behind Boyd, her hands on his back as she took in the scent of pack wafting from Genevieve. “Boyd, stop,” she pleaded

Catching her breath, Genevieve slowly stood up and met Boyd’s gaze without blinking. Instinctively, she put her hand out and touched his head. “Yield to me,” she said forcefully as she unconsciously drew on the bond, the Alpha scent wafting from her. 

Boyd blinked confused as he felt his claws began to retract. 

“Boyd, yield to me!” The glowing yellow eyes receded to brown and Boyd dropped to his knees, his head bowed. 

When Genevieve removed her hand from his head, it was trembling slightly. She looked up in surprise to see that Erica standing behind Boyd confused. 

“How did you do that?” Erica asked as she began to slowly back away.

“Erica, wait. Please don’t leave. I won’t hurt you,” she glanced back at Boyd. “Either of you, I promise.”

Erica swallowed her fear as she glanced back at Boyd who was slowly rising to his feet. “What do you want then? And what did you do the Boyd?”

Genevieve rose in her hands in a protective stance. “I just want to talk that’s all. Derek sent me to find you.”

“Why?” Erica said feeling more confident as she saw Boyd turn in her direction. 

“Because, she’s his mate,” Boyd answered.

“He’s right. I’m Derek’s mate and he sent me to find you because he doesn’t want you to leave. He wants a second chance.”

“A second chance to do what? Derek never said anything about this. About being hunted when we’ve done nothing wrong and–,”she started only to be interrupted by Genevieve when she reached out placing a calming hand on her arm.

“You’re right. Derek didn’t tell you everything about the dangers of being what he is. But, he did give you a choice and you chose to become a werewolf. All of this craziness with the kanimas and the Argents hunting you isn’t what being a werewolf is about. There is so much more that you can learn from Derek that you _will_ learn from him if you give him a second chance. But, please don’t leave before you give him a chance to fix this. You can go home and be safe, I promise you.” Genevieve easily read the yearning on Erica’s face and knew instantly that she had her. They just needed one last push. “Derek sent me to find you because he needs you, he wants you to stay. So please don’t leave.”

The betas shared another look that bespoke their intense connection. Seconds later, Erica nodded and eased away from the tree to take Boyd’s offered hand. “We’ll go with you.”

Genevieve nodded in reply dropping her hand after giving Erica’s arm a comforting squeeze. She glanced around for her flashlight. Spotting it a few feet away she picked it up and gesture for them both to follow her. “You won’t regret it, I promise. Come on, I’ll take you home.”

She held Erica’s gaze briefly before the teen nodded assent.

Without another word, Erica and Boyd fell in behind Genevieve and followed her out of the woods to her car.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since Boyd and Erica didn’t leave or get captured by the Alphas this changes things for them and the Hale Pack on general. So we are now officially entering AU territory for this story.


	14. Chapter Twelve

**

Chapter Twelve

**

By the time Genevieve finally arrived home it was well after midnight. 

She had dropped both Boyd and Erica at their respective homes and talked with each set of parents. After finding the teens in the woods and helping them to clean themselves up with the first aid kit in her car, she helped them had crafted a somewhat ridiculous tale to explain their return to their parents. It had taken more than a few hours but the plus side was that their parents were so thankful to have them home that neither set had questioned why she had brought them home. Both Erica and Boyd had agreed to meet with her and Derek the next day for the first official pack meeting.

She simply took a shower changed into her sleep shirt and shorts and fell into bed. She was awoken a few hours later when she felt a warm presence slide into her bed. “Derek,” she mumbled sleepily.

“Yeah, you were expecting someone else?” Derek whispered as he slid his hand over her stomach to pull her back into his chest. 

“Is everyone okay?”

“Jackson is Jackson again, I’m not sure if that a good thing. But, he’s not a kanima at any rate.”

“Good.” Genevieve shifted until she found a comfortable position lying on his chest and promptly went back to sleep.

*

The next morning Genevieve woke up and was surprised to find herself alone in her bed. As she sat up running her hand over the other side of her bed she vaguely recalled Derek telling her he had to run some errands before he left that morning … something about Peter.

She silently rose from her bed and stretched as she headed into her bathroom for her morning absolutions. Since it was Saturday, she intended to go for a morning jog so she pulled on her sports bra and running shorts, socks, and sneakers. Taking a few moments she secured her hair back with a band and grabbed her keys. She left her bedroom intending on heading down the stairs when she felt the subtle shift in the pack bond and stopped turning to the guest bedroom. She paused and knocked on the door once. “Isaac?”

Mere seconds later, the door opened to revealed the fully dressed teen. “Uh, hi.”

“Hi. What are you doing here?”

Isaac swallowed nervously. “Derek asked me to stay with you today while he’s out.”

Thin brows rose in surprise. “I see. Did he say why?”

“No, but it probably has to do with Gerard. He got away last night after Derek bit him.” Isaac offered but paused when he noted the surprise on her face.

“What do you mean when Derek bit him last night?”

Isaac glanced away scratching his brow as he tried to think of what to say next. “I guess he didn’t tell you about that.”

“No, he didn’t. But, something tells me that there’s _a lot_ he didn’t tell me.” Genevieve sighed inwardly. “Where is Gerard?”

“Uh, we’re not exactly sure. He started bleeding black blood so I doubt he got far but with Jackson turning back he kind of got lost in the shuffle.”

“Uh huh.” Genevieve nodded and turned back down the hallway. “Give me ten minutes to change.”

“Change for what?” Isaac asked he stepped into the hallway. “I thought you were going on a run or something. Did you change your mind?”

“No, I’m still going out but I’ll need something with a little bit more coverage if we’re to track Gerard.” 

Ten minutes later Isaac was in the living room waiting for Genevieve when she walked by. She had changed into dark jeans with black boots and a leather jacket. Her hair was unbound and resting in straight black waves on her shoulders. 

She walked pass the living room to her hallway closet and opened the door. She parted the coats in the closet to reveal a false wall with a key pad. She pressed in the numbers she knew by heart and waited for the click to open the safe. She took out a serrated knife and slid into the hidden sheath within her boots. Next, she pulled out a small bottle with clear liquid, a syringe filled with a black liquid, and a gun placing all the items in her jacket pockets. Closing the safe she pushed the coats back in place. “Alright, now I’m ready. Isaac, let’s go.” 

Isaac was standing behind her watching as she secured her weapons. “So… are you really guidance counselor?” He finally asked as he followed out to her garage.

Genevieve glanced at him as she climbed into her car a small smile. “I am but I also grew up in a pack. Didn’t Derek tell you?”

Isaac climbed into the passenger seat. “Derek’s not really big on talking, especially not about you.” He paused as he sniffed and looked in the backseat.

“I found Erica and Boyd last night. They’re at home resting.” Genevieve explained as she started her car and pulled out of her garage. “Which reminds me we’re having a pack meeting later today and they should be here for that.”

“How did you do it?”

“I tracked them. The same way I am hoping I can track Gerard. So fill me in. Tell me exactly what happened last night. How the hell did Derek end up biting Gerard?” She asked as she pulled onto the road and began a drive back to town.

By the time she reached the town proper, she had Isaac direct her to the scene as the previous night’s events. She parked the car near the abandoned warehouse.

“Derek and Peter tried to track Gerard last night but we lost the scent. He was going to look for him today.” Genevieve nodded as she walked around the space noting that the drops of black blood led to a side window at least six feet off the ground. She knelt down pulling out the small bottle and twisted off the cap. She also slid the knife out of its boot sheath and dipped the blade into the blood. She held the blade over the small bottle waiting until the blood dripped into bottle. Sheathing the knife as she stood she closed the small bottle and gently shook it. The clear liquid began to change colors. “Where does this window lead?”

“It goes toward the back of the building. What’s that?”

“Show me.” Isaac nodded and led the way out of building. “Werewolf blood has a natural healing enzyme built into its structure; it becomes a part of your DNA. I’m trying to see if he’s healing or if the mountain ash in his system stopped the transition. This liquid would turn blue if he’s in transition.” Genevieve explained as they arrived behind the warehouse to see Deaton bending down examining the blood beneath the window. “Alan, you’re not planning on getting your hands dirty, are you?”

“I do what I have to”

Genevieve smiled. “Good, I never liked you being retired.”

“Whoever said I was retired?” Deaton remarked as he stood up. “Good morning Isaac.”

“Doctor Deaton.” Isaac replied with a confused nod.

“I sincerely hope your plan wasn’t dependent on Derek biting Gerard. Creating a new _kanima_ isn’t exactly my idea of containment.”

Deaton acknowledged her criticism with a sigh. “Nor was it mine, it was the absolute last resort if it could not be helped.”

“I suppose not. Isaac here,” she nodded toward the teen. “Is my guard for the day or until this can be resolved. Needless to say I want it finished. Today. It should be fairly easy to resolve everything since Gerard is not transitioning.” She offered small bottle to Deaton to hold it to the sunlight to see that the clear liquid faintly turning gray. 

“No, he’s not.” Deaton agreed.

“So that’s good thing, right?” Isaac asked crossing his arms over his chest. 

“Not exactly. It simply means that he’s not transitioning into a werewolf. But, the black blood could mean that he’s becoming a kanima which is worse.” Deaton answered as he slid the small bottle into his pocket.

“Not to mention that would make him dangerous to everyone. We need to find him while he’s still vulnerable. I could try to track him but I’m not sure if I can since he’s not a part of my pack.” Genevieve added before both she and Deaton turned to Isaac. “Isaac do you think you could track him by scent?”

Isaac nodded hesitantly. “I could try but I’ve never done that before.” 

Genevieve gave him an encouraging smile as she reached over and squeezed his arm. “I can help to guide you. I need you to close your eyes and think back to last night.” Isaac closed his eyes. “Remember when Gerard came could you distinguish his scent from everyone else?”

Isaac nodded, eyes still closed. “Yes, he smelled like disease … death.”

“Good, now focus on that scent. Take a deep breath and release it. Think about the pack. Now, think about Gerard and the pack.” Isaac followed her instructions to the letter. “Open your eyes and take a deep breath.” As he slowly opened his eyes, she released her hold on his arm. “Can you scent him?”

“Yes, it’s like pack but not the same.”

“The mountain ash is doing its job then. Now, we need to find him.” Deaton warned.

“Not without me, you won’t.” Chris Argent said as he came up from behind the emissaries and Isaac.

“Chris, we weren’t expecting you.” Deaton replied wholly unsurprised by the other man’s appearance.

“I figured you might pop up to track my father down. If anyone is going to put him down it’ll be me.”

“That’s fine by me, Isaac will point us in the general direction.” Genevieve as she nodded to the teenager.

Isaac affirmed his position and took a deep breath taking in the air around him. “He went this way.” He gestured down the back of the building lead the way down the alley with everyone falling into step behind him. They went through the alley and past several old warehouses before the entering the woods that were misted with a morning fog. “I can’t scent him anymore, the trail ends here.” He glanced around at the cluster of trees around them.

Deaton nodded toward the shallow bed of water nearby. “He probably went into the water to get rid of his scent. Without another full moon his transition won’t take.”

“But, the kanima isn’t bound by the moon.” Isaac added. “Or at least Jackson wasn’t. He could change at will.”

“He’s right.” Chris said as he cocked his gun. “We should split up; he can’t be allowed to change into that creature.”

“Agreed.” Genevieve said with a nod before turning to Isaac. “I need you to go back to my car and wait for me.”

“Derek asked me to stay with you,” Isaac protested. 

If she were another person she might find Derek’s heavy handed actions touching. But, she wasn’t and she didn’t need an untrained beta to protect her. “Isaac, I’ll be fine. Just wait for me by my car, please.” He seemed to consider her statement before he nodded and took off at a run leaving. 

Chris noted that Isaac left without argument which stuck as curious as most beta wolves were reluctant take orders from humans. But, before he could say anything the guidance counselor and Deaton had taken off in separate directions. He filed that action away for later and focused on the task at hand, finding his father.

xXx

Genevieve cautiously stepped around another tree her gaze sweeping the area around her for anything out of the ordinary. She paused mid-stride, tensing as she heard the distinct crack of a branch and turned her head looking for the cause. Upon seeing a squirrel run away, she released the breath that she’d been holding to continue her walk when she felt a something grasp her leg and pull her down.

Dropping her hands to prevent landing head first on the forest floor she landed on her hands and swiftly turned onto her back using her legs to kick at whatever had grabbed her. She swore grasping for breath and she crawled at the dirt struggling to get back to her feet only to be forestall as Gerard grabbed hold of her legs and pulled her down yet again but this time she landed on her back. 

“Let me go, Gerard,” she said using all of her strength to try to pull free from him but was unable to as he tightened his hold on her and struggled to grab her arms. 

It was only when he had effectively trapped her beneath him that she got a good look at the former principal of Beacon Hills High. He certainly looked nothing like grandfatherly man that he introduced himself to her three months before. His pallor was grey as the residue from black blood had left its mark on his face. 

“Help me,” Gerard hissed as black liquid dripped out of his pores and onto to her. Genevieve redoubled her efforts to get free. 

“No!” Genevieve screamed as she got her hands free and pressed them into his chest harnessing all her energy to propel him away from her body. The force of the energy caused Gerard’s body to become airborne for a few minutes allowing Genevieve to roll away from him.

Gerard recoiled but landed on all fours. “You won’t get away from me this time, witch.” He grinned ghoulishly as he spit out the black blood and charged at her again. 

But, Genevieve was ready for him as he tackled her to the ground yet again. So intent on taking her down again, he never noticed that she had pulled out a syringe. As she fell back on the ground, she’d plunged the syringe into his neck and pushed down the plunger.

Gerard felt a sharp pain in his neck and reached for the syringe, jerking it out with a spurt of black blood. “You can’t kill me with a syringe, Witch. Didn’t Celeste teach you any better,” he spat at her.

Genevieve laughed as she watched the contents of the syringe immediately take effect darkening his pallor even more causing him to begin coughing up black blood. “Didn’t your father ever teach you to never enter a fight you can’t win?” She said placing her hands his chest and sending a tread of electrically directly to his heart shocking him as she pushed the man off of her body just as Deaton and Chris came running.

“Genevieve are you okay?” Deaton said playing no attention to Gerard convulsing on the ground as he reach to help Genevieve to come to her feet.

“I’m okay,” she replied grasping for breath and she rose uneasily to her feet. She was covered in dirt and her back was killing her but otherwise she was fine.

Chris was leaning over his father who was scratching at his chest and gurgling black blood. He made no moves to help him.

When Deaton was certain that Genevieve was fine he moved to take Gerard’s pulse. “His heart rate is slowing down.”

“He’s dying?” Chris asked incredulously glancing from the guidance counselor to his father. She wasn’t as big as Allison and yet she had taken down his father who not only outweighed her by at least 50 pounds not to mention his unknown strength after being bitten by the Alpha. “What did you do?”

“I did what needed to be done.” Genevieve said as she walked over and picked up the empty syringe that she’d used. “I used a liquidified mix of mountain ash and put it in his neck. If he’s not dead within a few minutes he will be a couple of hours.” Her brown eyes were fierce and challenging. “And when he’s dead, I want his hunters out of my town by nightfall.”

Sparring no glance for his dying father, Chris was singularly taken back by her the look in her eyes and iciness of her tone. “I don’t know what you think but I have no control over the hunters in his town, Ms. Morrell. I’m just a business owner.” 

“Bullshit!” Genevieve slid the empty syringe into her pocket. “I’m not going to play games with you, _Mr. Argent_ ; you are no more a simple business owner than I am just a school guidance counselor. You’re right the hunters in this town won’t take orders from you but they will from your daughter. But, considering how emotionally unstable your daughter is at the moment I don’t think you want me to talk to her—,”

“Now, you wait just a damn minute.” Chris said as he moved to stand before the guidance counselor.

“No, I will not. Your family has hurt enough people and I don’t want to involve the sheriff but I will. So I am going to ask you one last time, get your hunters out of this town.”

Chris immediately knew then that she somehow knew about his capture of Erica and Boyd. “They’ll be gone by nightfall.”

“Good, there’s just one more thing that I would like to discuss with you.” She sparred a glance to Deaton who gave her a small nod of encouragement. “The Hale Pack has been the propriety pack in this territory for decades. And in that time there were no random attacks or outbreaks, it was peaceful between us for years. I want that peace to return, therefore I am requesting an Accord between the Hale Pack and Argents.”

“An accord can only be struck by an Alpha or pack member of senior authority, which at last check does not include an emissary.” Chris remarked dryly with an arched brow.

“I am well aware of the guidelines for an accord—,”

“Then, you should know better than stepping outside of those bounds. It’s not your place to strike an accord you can only serve as witness. Or are you not aware of the code?”

Genevieve smiled and started to reply when Isaac rushed forward out of nowhere stepping between them.

“You don’t speak to her that way.” Isaac had heard Genevieve scream and rushed back into the woods to find her. By the time he’d reached them, he could only hear Chris Argent’s condescending tone as he attempted to intimidate Genevieve by stepping into her personal space.

“Isaac stand down,” Genevieve ordered softly touching the Beta’s arm and immediately feeling his tension leave his body. He immediately shifted into place beside her. 

Chris noted the actions of the beta in surprise as he followed her instruction without complaint. 

“I am not only well aware of the code but I am well aware of exactly how the Argents have _violated_ that code for over ten years. And in the last three months, I would say that you’ve thrown that code out the window for personal gain more than once. Don’t you dare quote that code to me. As for my authority, I am Mate to Alpha of the Hale Pack and you _will_ acknowledge to my authority!”

“Derek’s not mated!” Chris protested.

“He is, actually has been for over four years.” Deaton replied as he stepped forward. “I am here to serve as the Witness to the offering of an accord between the Hale Pack and Argent family. Do you acknowledge Genevieve’s authority and accept her offer of an accord?”

Chris withheld his comment having been properly chastised and gave a quick nod. “Your authority has been recognized. What is it you would like?”

“I want the bloodshed over between the Argents and Hale Pack. No more attacks on my pack.”

“Does that include Peter Hale? Can you guarantee that he won’t attack me or my daughter?”

“Peter Hale is _not_ a part of my pack. But, if he does anything to you or your daughter then _we_ will take him out. No member of my pack will attack you or your family unless under threat of death. Can you guarantee the same?”

“Agreed but if blood is split by the pack I want your approval to take care of it my way.”

“Absolutely not; _if_ the pack spills blood than they will be dealt with internally. I will not cede any authority of my pack to you.”

“Fine,” Chris said grudgingly after a moment glancing away. She was sharper than he’d thought. He briefly wondered where Derek had managed to find her. “I agree to the accord in order to return balance to Beacon Hill, but we will be watching.”

“Good,” Genevieve stated and stepped back to glance at Isaac with a small nod. “I trust you can handle getting rid of your father?”

“Of course.”

“Isaac and I have somewhere else to be. Have a nice day, Mr. Argent.” Genevieve said as she held her hand out for Chris to shake. It was a quick, firm handshake. Then, she turned and inclined her head for Isaac to follow her as they left.

*

Derek was clearing the last books out of his the remains of the Hale home. It was a slow process at first, but it needed to be done. He couldn’t continue to use the house as a crutch to the past. He needed to move on and do that he had to let go. Not to mention that the first place anyone looked for him was at the house.

He placed the last box in his car when his cell phone rang. He pulled it from his back pocket and answered without bothered to see who it was.

“What?”

“I got Isaac’s text and I’m not coming.”

“Scott?” Derek asked confused as to why the beta would call him to talk to Isaac.

“ I don’t understand what you want to meet about. We have nothing to talk about. The kanima’s gone and I’m not joining _your_ pack. So I’m not coming.” Scott paused and then added, “I need to take a break from all of this … stuff.”

“Okay,” Derek replied not getting a chance to ask what Scott was talking about before he hung up. He contemplated calling the teen back but ended up shrugging and placing the phone back in his pocket. He’d hadn’t seen Isaac all day. In fact, the only time he’d even talked to him was before he’d left Genevieve’s to look for Boyd and Erica. 

Ironically, he’d found the missing teens at their respective homes. So he’d headed to the Hale house to pack up the last of the family documents for safe keeping which was exactly how Peter found him when he showed up.

“Trouble in paradise, nephew? Has your little _witch_ already got your pack in line?”

“What do you want Peter?” Derek asked he placed another box in the trunk of the black Ford Taurus that he’d pulled out of the warehouse that morning. It was the last box of stuff that remained in the house. “Genevieve is a Druid not a witch.”

“Isn’t she? I did a little checking into the background of your little mate and you didn’t tell me that she was one of us. Her line is almost as old as the Argents and just as gray.”

“Considering I haven’t _told_ you anything about her what makes you think this is news to me?” Derek asked as he closed the trunk of car.

“Oh I don’t know given that I know you and how the spoken word is like a foreign language to you sometimes. I figured you may have missed something.” Peter said drolly, “Come on, now, we both know talking was never your strong suit, nephew.”

Derek rolled his eyes turning away when his cell began to ring again. He pulled it out and saw that it was Jackson calling this time. “Yes.”

“Seriously, dude, I know you think that I’m part of your pack now. But, I’m so not. So don’t expect me to be at your little meeting with those other losers because I have better things to do with my time.”

“Jackson, I didn’t–,” Derek started as he realized that it must have been Genevieve and that she’d asked Isaac to pass the word.

“Well, well because I wasn’t coming anyway.”

“Jackson, I expect you to attend any meeting that I—,”

“You can’t tell me what to do!” Jackson protested exasperated. “I’m an omega like Scott, a lone wolf.”

“No, Scott’s Alpha died,” Derek eyes flickered over to Peter briefly who listened in on the call with bemusement. “He can do whatever chooses and if he wants to join the pack he can. But you, your Alpha is very much alive and well.” He allowed his authority as Alpha to bleed through his voice. “You _will_ attend this meeting and you _will_ be on time. Is that understood?”

“Yes,” Jackson snapped hanging up the phone with a bang.

Derek snorted rolling his eyes as he put his phone in his back pocket and headed toward the driver’s seat of his car. To his surprise, Peter slid into the passenger’s seat. “What are you doing, Peter?” He asked with a sigh.

“Well, if there’s a pack meeting, it would be prudent for me to attend wouldn’t you say. After all, I’m not only pack, I’m family.”

“Whatever.” Derek said as he ignored the other man and put the car in to drive.


	15. Chapter Thirteen

**Chapter Thirteen**

In what would be a first for him, Derek pulled into Genevieve’s driveway and parked his car. He left the car without a word to his uncle not particularly caring if the man followed him or not. He opened the front door with the key and left Peter standing just outside the doorway.

His uncle attempted to follow him but was blocked and could not pass the threshold. “Clever little witch, I guess I’ll just wait out here.”

“Sounds good to me,” Derek said as he shut the door in the other man’s face. He could feel through the bond that Genevieve was at home but he didn’t see her on the main floor. He headed upstairs to her bedroom and opened the door finding her walking out of her bathroom in a short silk robe and head wrapped in a towel.

“Derek, I thought I heard my door open. Is Isaac back yet?” Genevieve asked as she paused by her dresser to pull her hair damp hair into a clamp. Then, she opened the top drawer taking out a short-sleeved top and the bottom drawer to pull out a pair of jeans. 

“Isaac should be here with you. I told him to stay with you until I could deal with Gerard Argent.”

Genevieve stepped out of her silk robe, tossing it on her bed as she slid on the dark wash jeans over the pale green bra and panty set. “Gerard Argent is no longer our problem. And Isaac is not here because I asked him to run a few errands for me.”

“What have you done?”

“I did exactly what I told I would do. I’ve accepted my position in this pack, which I may remind you, is exactly what you’ve wanted since the bond was reactivated. As for what I did to Gerard Argent, considering it somehow slipped your mind to tell me you bit him this morning, let’s just say I’ve taken care of the problem and leave it at that.”

“Genevieve,” Derek protested.

“Don’t.”

“So I’m not allowed to be concerned? You could have been hurt.”

“Oh please,” she scoffed as she unclipped her hair to run a wide tooth comb through it. “He was more of danger to me as the Principal to Beacon Hills High than he was this morning. His body was already disintegrating from the inside out I merely helped it along.” She said before dropping the comb on the dresser to return to her bathroom to blow dry her hair.

He shifted leaning back against her dresser waiting for her to finish and return to the room. Her hair was shining and smelling vaguely of Moroccan Argon oil. “Did you at least take Isaac with you?”

“Of course, I wouldn’t have found Gerard otherwise. Since I hadn’t a chance to call you yet, how did you know I was home?”

“I got two calls, one from Scott and the other from Jackson. They were both asking about a pack meeting?” He asked with an arched brow.

“Yes, I had Isaac send them a text.”

“Why did you call a meeting?”

“Considering everything that’s happened in the last week— hell the last 48 hours— don’t you think we need one? Not to mention that I promised Erica and Boyd that they would have a chance to talk you.” She paused briefly to gather her thoughts. “And I can’t be sure but I think I may have claimed them last night.”

“How did—,”

“I don’t know. It wasn’t like with Isaac. He called to me and I answered. It was different with Boyd. He was growling and aggressive but he knew who I was and he-he just yielded to me.”

“He didn’t try to attack you?”

“No, he didn’t. And I don’t think he would have unless I was a threat to him or Erica. He was hurt and shielding her when I came upon them.” 

“Shielding her from what?” 

“From what I can gather, the Argents stumbled on them at some point yesterday and held them in their basement. Gerard tortured them with wires and electricity. At some point, Chris Argent found his conscious because he just let them go.” She remarked bitterly as she slipped on a pair of black flats from her closet. The sound of her garage door opening and feeling the tug of the pack bond let her know that Isaac had arrived with Erica and Boyd. “I tell you the rest later after the meeting. There are some other things you need to know.”

Derek sighed but nodded following Genevieve out of her bedroom and down the stairs. They were just entering the living room when he heard the door from the garage open and saw his pack shuffle in with Isaac leading the way. Erica and Boyd followed with their hands clasped tightly together. But, it was Erica’s appearance that struck him first. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she wore a pair of loose fitting sweats with a t-shirt clinging tightly to Boyd as they entered the room. Gone was the confident shewolf that commanded attention when she walked into a room. In her place was a frightened wolf, a wounded pup and he didn’t like it, he didn’t like it one bit.

xXx

Isaac handed the car keys Genevieve as he passed by her and settled on the sofa. “Hey, Derek you know your creepy uncle is on the porch. Right?”

“I’m aware.” Derek replied causing Genevieve to shoot him a look.

“You brought Peter here?”

“No, not intentionally, he’s hard to get rid of. Besides, he couldn’t come in.”

“Good, then the mountain ash is doing its job. Guys have a seat.” Genevieve said as she directed the pack toward the sofa and watched as Erica and Boyd sat down huddled together.

Derek sighed shaking his head when the subtle scent of fear came to him. He directed his gaze to the pack and noted that there was an undercurrent of something else he couldn’t identify in the air. “Are you okay?”

“The Argents won’t hurt you again.” Genevieve said solemnly as she could feel the tension in the air and tried to dissolve as best she could. “The hunters are leaving today. They won’t attack you, track or hunt you down. I promise.”

Boyd released the breath that he’d been holding and let the tense leave his body before finally returning Derek’s concerned gaze. “Are we still in your pack?”

Derek’s brow furrowed confused. “Of course, why wouldn’t you be?”

“We left—,” Erica started.

“And if Genevieve hadn’t found you last night I would have been looking today.” Derek confirmed watching as Erica and Boyd shared a quiet look. “You’re _my_ pack and I know that I haven’t been the best Alpha but I wouldn’t have asked you to join if I didn’t want you here.”

Genevieve gave him a small nod in support before adding. “A pack is like family and you don’t let family go without a fight, no matter what. If you’re willing, Derek and I can teach you what it means to be a part of pack. It’s more than just fighting and training.”

“We’re willing, if you are.” Isaac replied having had a detailed discussion with his pack mates on the drive over. He’d shared everything that had happened that previous night as well as that morning. Not to mention his own thoughts about Genevieve taking a more active role in the pack. He’d told them that when she was around Derek was calmer and less quick to anger. He didn’t exactly know what the plan for the pack was but anything was better than it had been before.

“Good,” Genevieve said with a smile as she looked at Derek. “Derek and I —we need to step outside for a second. Help yourself to anything in the kitchen.” She called out grabbing the Alpha’s hand as they headed to the front door. She stepped outside and Derek followed behind her.

“Finally, I was beginning to feel slighted. Was my invitation to this little pack meeting lost?” Peter remarked from his position on the edge of the porch. 

“Right, so I’m going to make this quick because I really don’t like you. I don’t want here, Peter. I don’t trust you and if I had my way I’d focus all my energy and resources on putting you back in the ground.” She said quietly crossing her arms over her chest.

“Well, aren’t you just charming,” Peter hissed.

“I’d call it honest. The only reason I’m talking to you is because I don’t want to cause a scene.” She dropped her arms and stepped closer until she was less than a foot away. “Derek won’t kill you because you’re the last member of his family but I hold no illusions about you—about who and what you are. You harm anyone under my protection … the pack …Lydia … and let’s just say I can be a very dangerous person to cross. Make no mistake Peter I _will_ kill you.”

While Peter had no immediate reply he knew that icy warning wasn’t a threat but a promise of things to come. Yet, instead of scaring him, he was impressed. Derek had chosen his mate well. His nephew may be blinded by their shared blood but she wouldn’t be. 

Assured that her threats had done their job, Genevieve turned back to Derek with a slight smile. She patted his chest. “Get your Uncle off my porch. I don’t want him here with Lydia arrives.” She leaned up and pressed a kiss to his lips. 

Derek gave a small nod and opened the door for her to slip back inside. He crossed his arms over his chest and directed his gaze at his uncle. “You need to leave, Peter.”

“Ahh, so that’s how it’s going to be nephew. The little _witch_ says jump and you ask how high.”

“I’m the one keeping her from killing you against my better judgment.” He stepped closer to his uncle. “You don’t want to get on her bad side. Gerard Argent did and now he’s gone. Do you really want to know what she’d do to _you_? If you do, I’ll gladly step aside.”

“I’ll leave but, nephew, you and I need to talk.”

“And we will, but not here, and not right now. Go Peter.” Derek ordered quietly as he heard Jackson’s car coming up the road. Without another word Peter turned and jogged away from Genevieve’s front door. A few minutes later, Jackson’s sports car stopped in front of Genevieve’s home. The couple exited the car hand-in-hand and walked toward the front door.

xXx

Jackson was annoyed that he’d been summoned to some stupid pack meeting on his first official day as a werewolf. He wasn’t a loser like the rest of this so-called pack so the idea of spending an afternoon with people he couldn’t stand wasn’t a highlight for him at all. The only saving grace was that Lydia had agreed to come with him. 

“Jackson, how good of you to come.” Derek said drily from the porch as he clapped his hand on Jackson’s shoulder as he attempted to pass the Alpha.

“I wasn’t aware I had a choice.” Jackson snapped as he tried to jerk his shoulder away from Derek’s ironclad grip with little success.

“Lydia why don’t you ahead inside. Jackson and I need to have a word.”

Lydia dressed in a short white and red print dress with matching red scandals paused just outside the door to turn back and peer at them from her sunglasses. With a sigh, she crossed her arms over her chest and tapped a heeled foot on the ground. “I’ll wait.” 

Derek’s brows rose in surprise as he narrowed his eyes at her.

She blinked and merely rolled her eyes at him solely unimpressed. 

“I’ll make this short then. Do not disrespect Genevieve by showing up late for another meeting.”

“Who the hell is Genevieve?”

“Ms. Morrell, she’s his mate. Jackson, I told you this earlier.” Lydia chimed in. “Honestly, you need to listen when I talk to you, it would really save you from appearing like such an asshole … half the time. And I told you we were late.”

Derek eased his grip on Jackson’s shoulder and watched the girl pulled the teen into the house behind her. Shaking his head, he followed them in. They were a strange couple.

They all walked into the living room to see that each of the betas were diligently writing something down on a notepads and while Genevieve stood by the fireplace. Derek took his place beside her. “Jackson, Lydia please have a seat.”

Jackson followed Lydia over the loveseat and sat down besides her managing to avoid making eye contact with anyone else in the room. 

“I’m glad that you could join us. Since I’m sure you all know each we’ll skip the introductions and keep this brief because I know you all have things to do. Things are going to be different in the pack from now on. First, we’re going to have regular pack meetings and expect each of you to show up every time unless there is a problem. And if there is a problem, don’t wait until the meeting to let one of us know. We should be aware of it, the minute it becomes a problem. Next, none of you can afford to miss anymore school. So from this day forward, short of illness— which is highly unlikely— I expect you to report to school every day.”

“Wait a minute! You brought me here to talk about _school_? I’m not staying for this.” Jackson said as he rose from the loveseat.

The other pack members quickly looked up as Derek started to shift forward, only to be held in place when Genevieve touched his arm. “Jackson, do you have a problem with my request?”

“Uh yeah, I’m not like these losers here who bailed on school for two weeks. My record is exemplary.”

“You think so?” 

“Yes,” he nodded sure of himself. He was not about to be considered one of these freaks. He wasn’t even one of Derek’s idiot pack.

“You might want to think again. After two months of being a kanima nearly 24/7, your GPA is _not_ quite the scholastic achievement that you picture it to be. So I would suggest before you demean your peers take you a moment to think about how your actions may have not only put strain on your attendance and GPA but also on the others in this room who worked relieve you of that issue. Now, sit down!”

Jackson opened his mouth to argue but at her intense gaze he sat down and, though he would deny it till kingdom come, pouted like the petulant teen that he was. It didn’t help matters when his girlfriend added her two cents to the already solid argument.

“Nothing says juvenile delinquent like failing sophomore year. And Jackson, I don’t _date_ underclassmen.” Lydia added with a flick of her hair.

“You are werewolves so drawing unnecessary attention to yourself brings attention to the pack. And after the last few months, I think we can all agree that it’s the last thing you want. So if you need help ask for it, I will do what I can which, includes smoothing things over with your parents or talking to your teachers. Jackson, I had the others make out a list of classes and any assignments they recall that they failed to submit. On Monday, I plan to speak with each of their teachers to get extensions or additional assignments if needed. Now, you can decline the offer if you’d like, but really it is in your best interest to do the same.”

Lydia reached over and grabbed the pad and pen from Isaac and made a list within seconds. When Jackson attempted to protest, she silenced him with an arch of brow before tearing off the paper and rising to her feet. She handed the list to Genevieve. “Done. Is that all?”

“Yes.”

“Good. I’ll see you Monday,” Lydia said before turning and slipping on her sunglasses as she walked to the door. “Jackson,” she called from the hallway. 

The teen grumbled assent to Genevieve and glared at the room at large as he rose to his feet and followed his girlfriend out. Shortly thereafter, Genevieve gathered the lists from the others and they left.

xXx

When the front slammed shut for the final time, Genevieve placed the papers on her table and glanced up Derek. 

“Jackson is—,”

“An asshole.” Derek finished with a snort. “I’m aware.”

Genevieve smiled. “Honestly, I don’t know why you picked him to be the first member of your pack.”

“He asked and I needed a pack.”

“That you did.” Genevieve agreed, massaging her temples and shaking her head. “But, maybe you should probably hold off on adding more teenagers to the pack.” 

“Probably.” 

Her smile slowly faded as Genevieve recalled that there was much that needed to be discussed. “In light of everything that’s happened over the last couple of days we should probably talk. There are some things that I need to tell you.”

Derek nodded. “Yeah, we should talk.” He followed Genevieve to her kitchen and sat down at the table across from her. 

And then there was silence. The couple merely stared at one another as if waiting for the other person to talk. 

Finally, Genevieve broke the silence clearing her throat.

“I know about the Alpha Pack. I know that they’re headed to Beacon Hills and I know the reason they are is because of you— they want you. But, what I don’t know is why?”

Derek’s brows rose at the mention of the Alpha Pack but he didn’t seem surprised by her confession. “That makes two of us. I don’t know what they want from me.”

“I don’t understand. I know Deucalion and he usually has some master plan. He’s not impulsive when he goes after an Alpha there’s always a reason.”

“Well, I wish I knew but I don’t. How do you know Deucalion?”

“I was trained to be an Emissary, Derek. I _know_ about a lot of things. But, in the case of Deucalion, we’ve met before and let’s just leave it at that. We have a bigger problem right now; the packs that we grew up in were very different than this one. For one, they were more than just a couple of shifters and an Alpha. They were a family … a unit… a community and they were strong.”

Derek ran dragged a hand over his face, sighing haggardly. “Yes, you said that early. I tried to form this pack the best I could and to make them strong…you think we need to be a family. But I—”

“I don’t mean in the traditional sense of the word.” She reached over covering his hand with her own. “A family is more than blood ties Derek, it’s about the bonds.”

“I know that. But, how is that going to help the pack? You’ve seen them together. Sure, Isaac, Erica, and Boyd will fall in line but Jackson? You’ve seen how they act around him.”

“Like teenage clichés, yeah, I get it. They don’t have to like each other but they need to learn to trust each other and us. To start, school is a big part of their lives, so that’s why I’m going to make sure they all stay on the right track. They need that stability because change is coming and that can be at least the one constant in their lives. The other part of that is you helping them to learn how to anchor their wolves. Once, that’s settled I think everything else will fall into place.”

“I can do that. I’ve already begun with Isaac, Boyd and Erica I was working with… before.”

“But, can you do it without the handcuffs and other torture devices you have in that chest. They are barbaric and unnecessary.”

“They work,” he protested.

“So does explaining how to find an anchor. I know the handcuffs are a go-to method to keep them in line if they get out of control. But, they are going to have to return home and it’s going to be easier not to have to explain why they are battered and bruised one minute but wake up completely unmarked the next.”

“You have a point.” He conceded.

“We should probably talk about Isaac.”

“What about him?”

“Well, have you been contacted by CPS for a walk through?”

“No, I haven’t, do you think that’s a problem?”

“That depends on where you’re going to say that Isaac has been staying. You could say his house but the neighbors would know that you haven’t been there.”

“Why would I say that? I have a place.”

“You do? Where?” Genevieve asked incredulously given that Derek had been with her most nights and when not she assumed Derek had been living in his warehouse.

“It’s a loft space. But, it’s not furnished.”

“Why am I just now hearing about this?”

Derek shrugged. “You didn’t ask.”

She rolled eyes and sat back in her chair thinking out loud. “So excluding the living arrangements which can easily be fixed are you intending on retaining custody of him.”

Derek leaned forward arms propped on the table. “As opposed to what? Letting him go into foster care?”

“Yes, I mean no. Isaac is old enough to become an emancipated minor. It would take some work but I could help him get everything together.”

“I’ll think about it.” Derek replied resolutely, at the end of the day it would be Isaac’s choice to make not his.

“It’s just an option to consider. I wasn’t going to mention it but if this isn’t going to be permanent it might be the best solution for Isaac and I didn’t want to say anything to him without talking to you first.”

“I’d rather keep him with me but if this is something you think would be better for him then we could talk to him about it.”

“Okay. So,” she cleared her throat. “I struck an Accord for you with the Argents.”

He tensed at the mention of the Argents. “You did what?” 

“Look, Chris Argent was there and it seemed like a perfect opportunity.” She briefly outlined the agreement that had been reached between the hunter and the pack.

“What makes you think that he’s even going to keep to the agreement?”

“Because in the span of six months, Chris has lost a sister, a wife and now a father, he doesn’t want to lose his daughter. We are all on the same side here.”

“No, we’re not. His sister killed my family and his father tried to finish the job. I fight to survive because if I don’t there is no one left. I don’t trust him.”

“We cannot afford to fight the Argents on one side and the Alpha Pack on the other. I know what I’m doing. Did you think I just sat here for a week and randomly decided to strike an accord on your behalf? I spent the past week looking at pack histories, reviewing emissary journals, and talking to pack elders so I know how to help you.” She rose from the table moved to sit down beside him imploring him with her eyes. “I am your mate, Derek. That means we are partners in this pack and I won’t make a decision that I don’t think is right. The question is do you trust me to do that.”

“I trust you.” His response was immediate. “But, I won’t trust an Argent. I can’t.”

“Then, don’t trust him, just _trust_ me.” 

“I will,” he paused grabbing her hand to pull her eyes back to his. “And I will uphold any Accord you strike.”

“Thank you.”

With a small nod, he released her hand. “I have a favor to ask of you.”

“Of course.”

“Scott’s Mom knows about us.”

“Yes, Alan mentioned it to me.”

“Scott asked me to talk to his mother. He wants me to reassure her that being like me isn’t a death sentence.”

“Okay,” she nodded.

“I would like you to come with me and offer a human perspective.”

“A human perspective?” She repeated.

“Genevieve, you grew up in pack and you’re normal–,”

“I wouldn’t exactly call my experiences normal, Derek. But, I can think of something to reassure her.”

“That’s all I need. Thank you.” 

She smiled placing her hand over his. “Like I said before, we’re in this together, you and me.” 

“You and me,” Derek said as he leaned forward and kissed her.


	16. Chapter Fourteen

**Chapter Fourteen**

True to her word, Genevieve and Lydia met in her office first thing Monday morning. They briefly discussed a plan of action before Genevieve sent a note to have Stiles pulled from class.

“You know can still do this on your own.” Genevieve remarked when she noticed the break in the younger woman’s seemingly unshakable bravado. “I can—”

“I know.” The teen interrupted, throwing back her mane of red curls. “He won’t decline, I know it.”

Before Genevieve could respond, there was a knock on her office door and Stiles was popping his head in hesitantly through the small opening.

“Ms. Morrell, you wanted to see me?”

“Yes, Mr. Stilinski. Please come in, have a seat.” Stiles slid the rest of the way into the room, but hesitated closing the door when he saw Lydia sitting in one of the two seats in Genevieve’s office for students, his face was lit with surprise.

“Uh, well this isn’t strange at all. Hi Lydia.” He fumbled to close the door, before grabbing the back of the other seat and plopping down in the chair beside his former crush. “What‘s this about?” He asked to no one in particular, looking back and forth between the guidance counselor and Lydia.

Both women shared a look with a mere rising of eyebrows, before Genevieve acquiesced to the younger woman with a nod and she answered the forthright teen.

“Ms. Morrell has offered to train me to control … whatever it is that allowed Peter use me.”

“That’s … uh … smart, I guess. But, I don’t see what that has to do with me.”

“Don’t you? You’re one of the main constants in this whole supernatural thing. Every time something weird happens, you’re there in the thick of it or you know about it. And … I don’t know why, but I want you there with me on this. ”

“Wouldn’t Jackson be more up to task with this whole protection thing? Why not ask him? He’s a Beta now, fresh out the womb and everything. He can protect you.”

“I’m sure he can, but I’m not asking for protection. I don’t want to be protected. I’m not some damsel in distress, Stiles. I want to know how to protect myself. And I would think that you wouldn’t want to rely on Scott to save you all the time.”

“Hey, I’ve saved Scott plenty of times,” Stiles protested vehemently not liking his relationship with his best friend reduced to needing to be saved all the time.

“I never said you didn’t. I was merely pointing out that we,” she gestured between the two of them. “Are in the same boat. And, before you say anything, I don’t want Allison either.” She added rolling her eyes when he opened his mouth. “I want you. Look, Stiles you’re smart. You’re the only one who could understand what it’s like. Allison can train me to use weapons, but you and I, we excel when we use our minds and that’s why it has to be you.

“I get that Lydia but I’m not like you. There’s nothing special about me, I’m just a human. 

“Exactly, we’re not werewolves. We need to be more prepared to deal with whatever may come our way. I don’t want what Peter did to happen again. If Ms. Morrell can teach me a way to protect myself from harm then I want to learn and you should want it too.”

Genevieve observed the pair as they bantered, with Stiles allowing Lydia to dominate the conversation for a few moments before finally intervening out of curiosity. “Stiles,” she waited until he met her gaze shifting from an intent staring session with Lydia. “Is there something else at play here? Is there a reason why you don’t think you should be trained?”

“Look, it’s not that I don’t want to help. But…” Stiles sighed softly. “We _are_ different, Lydia. I’m not anything special—I just don’t see what I would have to offer to this situation.”

“That’s the second time you’ve said that, not being special. You, say that as though you have nothing to offer with the virtue of it just being you. You think Lydia is special?” 

“Yes, of course.” Stiles answered empathically.

“Why? Why her and not you?”

“As Lydia pointed out, I’m just a human. However, unlike her I don’t have some great immunity to a wolf bite…at least I don’t think so. But that’s not really the point; beyond doing a little research here and there I don’t really do much on the whole big grandiose scale of things.”

Lydia glanced at him surprised but did not response because Genevieve beat her to it.

“I see, Stiles what do you know about mountain ash?”

Stiles scratched his forehead in confusion. “Dr. Deaton said mountain ash can protect against the supernatural.”

“Yes,” Genevieve smiled nodding. “Did he also tell you that mountain ash is only as powerful belief in the person who yields it? Have _you_ used mountain ash?”

“Yes.”

“And did it work?”

“Yes, but I don’t see how—,” he started protesting.

“When Scott first told you he was bitten what did you do? Did you run away or did you research his symptoms to figure out what happened?”

“What’s your point?”

“My point is that maybe you aren’t a hunter like Allison or like Lydia whose natural abilities seem to give them an affinity toward the supernatural. You’re human but there is nothing _just_ human about you. What you are is someone whose belief is so powerful he can will mountain ash, not all _humans_ can do that. You are also someone who helps even when you your own life is at stake. That is gift, Stiles. Not everyone can or will do what you have done time and time again for Scott, Derek and the pack. In _our_ world, there is always a place for someone like you and that’s why I would like you to work with Lydia. Dr. Deaton and I believe that you could be a great emissary, if you want to. But, it has to be your choice.”

“I need you Stiles. I _can’t_ —I don’t want to do this alone. I trust you, more than anyone else. Please say you’ll do this.” Lydia added quietly eyes peering through Stiles with a warm beseeching gaze.

The truth of the matter was there wasn’t really a choice here. From the moment that Stiles had been exposed to this world, he’d known that he could never really walk away from it without learning everything there was about it. “When do we start?”

Lydia smiled and reached over to grab his hand. “We were working on a schedule for the summer. What works best for you?”

Together they outlined an aggressive schedule for the summer to begin their lessons.

xXx

Later that day, Genevieve was putting away the records for some of the students she had met with early that day when she was interrupted by another knock at her door.

“I’m not accepting anymore appointments this afternoon.” She remarked as she closed the file she was looking at and placed it in the file cabinet. “You’ll have to come back tomor—,” she said trialing off as she finally glanced up to see Allison Argent standing hesitantly at her doorway. “Allison, what can I do for you?”

“I know I don’t have an appointment. But I…” Allison paused as she glanced down fidgeting slightly with the frayed ends of her shirt. “My Dad said you’re the one who found Gerard and stopped him before he hurt anyone else.” Her weary eyes met Genevieve’s steady accessing gaze. “I just wanted to say… thank you and ask if you could tell Erica and Boyd that I’m sorry.”

“I see,” Genevieve said as she leaned back against her desk, taking a moment to contemplate her actions before finally inviting the girl into her office, with a wave of her hand. “I’m not sure what your father told you, but my finding Gerard was a stroke of luck, nothing more. As for your apology, I think it would be better served coming directly from you, don’t you agree?”

Allison licking her lips and gave a hesitant nod. “I know, I just I can’t face them. Not after what I did … the lines I crossed—I,” she glanced down at her hands with her dark curls framing her face. “I hurt them … badly I think.”

“I know, but I also know that grief sometimes makes us do things we wouldn’t normally do. Allison,” Genevieve said waiting for the girl to meet her eyes. “You need to give yourself time to grieve and mourn the loss of your mother. Heal yourself then you can make amends.”

Allison nodded quietly as her eyes filled with tears and she glanced away. “That’s what my father said.”

“Then, in this instance, I would agree with him.”

The bell rang for the next class. Allison swiped at the tears on her cheeks. “I should go, I have class.” 

Genevieve gave a small nod indicating that she could go. She watched as the girl took a moment at the door to compose herself before pulling it open. “Allison, if you ever need to talk, I’m here.”

“Thank you.” Allison said and left the office.

xXx

Genevieve was updating a student record, the final record that she was due to update for the day when yet another knock at her door interrupted her, but this time she knew before looking up at the door it was her mate.

“Come in,” she said her head down has she finished her write-up, lifting just a finger to acknowledge her most welcome intruder . “Just give me a minute to finish this note and I’ll be ready, Derek.” 

“Take your time, I’m early anyway.” 

Genevieve finished the last sentence and closed the record. She glanced up to see Derek in his standard uniform of dark jeans, a dark grey Henley t-shirt. “You shaved?”

“I did. You seem surprised?” He asked with arch of the brow.

“I-I am. I didn’t expect that. What brought this change along?”

“I wanted to make a good impression on Mrs. McCall. Are you ready?” He asked as he watched her grab her purse and out of the desk drawer and move from behind the desk.

“Yes,” she answered pulling the sunglasses out of her purse to perch them on her head as she took in Derek’s appearance stepping closer to survey his shave. “Well, I guess it does make you look less of a creepy older guy hanging around high school kids.”

“Thanks, I think.” Derek rolled his eyes as he pulled open the door and held it open for her to lead the way out of the office. She paused midway out and caressed his newly smooth face. 

“Derek next time leave a _little_ scruff.”

He smiled placing a hand on the small of her back to steer her out the room. “Noted.” 

*

Melissa McCall wasn’t exactly sure what she expected when Scott told her that Derek would be coming by to talk to her. As she rearranged the pillows on her couch for the fifth time she tried to recall what Scott had told her about Derek Hale. He was an Alpha to the pack that Scott didn’t belong to. According Stiles, he was a natural born wolf, which meant that he’d been born a werewolf as opposed to a bitten one like Scott was. And his family that had died in that fire years ago were also born werewolves. They’d been killed by Kate Argent, who was apparently Scott’s ex-girlfriend’s aunt, who was ultimately killed by Derek’s crazed Uncle Peter a few months ago. It was a lot to take in.

But, she didn’t have much of a choice, her son was a werewolf. Scott was werewolf. Her child—no teenager— that still called her to kill spiders in his bathroom was a werewolf. So she’d agreed to meet with Derek Hale and talk to him in an effort to learn how to navigate life in this strange new world. Because she was Scott’s mother and at the end of the day that was all that mattered to her. Her son will always be her baby no matter what age he was; no matter what new distinction he fell under he was hers.

The doorbell rang and she stood and walked to the door. Opening the door, she was surprised to see a tall, young man and the guidance counselor from the high school.

“Mrs. McCall,” the guidance counselor said with a smooth lilting voice. “I’m Genevieve Morrell, I don’t know if you remember me but we’ve met before at the school.” Melissa took in her petite frame in a sleeveless black sheath dress and sleek black pumps and tried to recall when they had met before. Genevieve turned slightly with a small smile and gestured toward the young man by her side. “This is Derek Hale. May we come in?”

Melissa tried not to let her shock show, but she knew it must have. “Yes, of course. I’m sorry I just was expecting someone … well someone, somewhat older.” Melissa stepped back to allow them entry to her home. “We can talk in the living room.”

“Thanks,” Ms. Morrell said as she and the Alpha followed her to the living room. They sat down on the loveseat together. 

It was apparent from how close they were seating that they were a couple or something close to it in her estimation. But, Derek was rigid in his appearance, was clearly uncomfortable being there. “So you’re a werewolf?” She asked expectantly glancing from Derek to Scott’s guidance counselor.

“Yes. Yes, I am.” Derek Hale answered but clarified. “She, however, is not. Genevieve is human.”

“Okay.” She said nodding her head as she sat down in side chair closest to the loveseat. “Scott told me that the stuff that happened with Allison’s grandfather and Jackson isn’t normal for a werewolf. Is that true?”

“The kanima, Jackson, it’s hard to explain.”

“Try, please.”

Derek frowned slightly but answered her somewhat clinically. “Normally, if you’re bitten you become one of us or you die. In Jackson’s case the bite took but reacted differently and instead of becoming a werewolf he became a warped variation of himself willed to do the bidding of another.” His jaw clenched and his eyes darken slightly verifying before her very eyes his otherness. “However, you’ll learn there are no guarantees where hunters are concerned.” 

“No guarantees? What exactly does that mean for my son? Should I be on the lookout for some trying to kill him?” She watched as Genevieve placed her hand on Derek’s leg and within seconds his eyes lighten and his posture lost some of rigidness as he glanced at the other woman.

“Mrs. McCall, Derek doesn’t mean to put you on the edge about the hunters. I’m sure that you are aware, at least vaguely, of his past with the Argents. Hunters in general won’t harm innocents or those who live peacefully in the community. The Argents, even live by a code to only harm those who harm them. Gerard Argent, however is a special case, not the norm. Scott is safe here. Chris Argent has assured me that all of the local hunters in the area will not engage the pack or Scott and those of Gerard’s ilk have left the area.”

“While, that certainly is a relief you’ll have to excuse if I choose not to believe it. Ms. Morrell those men shot up the police department with _us_ in _it_! They didn’t care who was there or who they hurt. If one of those men comes after my son again, I’m calling the cops and having them arrested.”

Derek glanced back at her with an arched brow. “Do you think that will stop them?”

“No, but it will certainly let them know that I won’t stand by and let them hurt my son. This brings me to another thing I’ve been wondering about. Have you considered telling the Sheriff what you are?”

“No.”

“Yes.” 

The couple answered the question at the same time and then glanced at each other seemingly having an entire conversation with their eyes. It lasted a few seconds before Ms. Morrell returned her gaze.

“Telling the Sheriff could potentially complicate certain things so it would be better to wait until things have calmed down at bit more.”

“Uh huh,” Melissa nodded. “Forgive me for asking this, but Ms. Morrell what is exactly is your position in this. I mean you’re human so …”

“I was raised in a pack. My mother was a leader with some authority in the pack. Derek asked me here because he thought I might be able to help put you at ease.”

“I see.” But, she really didn’t see how that was going to put her at ease at all. 

“Can I level with you Mrs. McCall?” 

“Yes, of course. I’d appreciate it if you would.” 

“Genevieve isn’t just here because she grew in a pack. I asked her here to show you that not everyone who grows up in a pack is hunted or in fear for their life. Some of us grow up and have normal everyday lives like anyone else. Yes, there will be challenges but being a werewolf isn’t a death sentence, it’s a gift. That’s what I’m teaching my pack and that’s what Scott wanted you to know.”

“Stiles mentioned that Scott isn’t a part of your pack because he’s a Beta. He said something about how him being Beta means he doesn’t have to join unless he wants to but the other members of your pack are Betas so they don’t have a choice or something like that.” She sighed scratching her head. “Honestly, I think Stiles confused me more than anything. So how does this work exactly?”

“Essentially, a pack is made up of at least three members an Alpha and two Betas or an Alpha, a Beta and an Omega. The terms of Beta and Omega are terms of strength within a pack. The strength of a werewolf can change from an Alpha to Beta, a Beta to an Alpha, or a Beta to Omega, etc. In Scott’s specific case, he was bitten by another Alpha so he’s not aligned with Derek’s pack.” Ms. Morrell said.

“But, I thought Peter was your uncle and he was the Alpha before.”

“He was—is my uncle but blood lines are different,” Derek clarified. “Once Peter was gone, his tie to Scott went with him. So now with his Alpha gone, Scott has a choice. He can choose to be a part of my pack or remain neutral.”

“What about Isaac? Is he in your pack?”

“Yes, he is. As are two others besides Jackson, Erica Reyes and Vernon Boyd— they all fall under my protection because I bit them.”

“Don’t you think it was more than a little irresponsible, I mean they’re just kids themselves and now their lives are changed forever.”

“Mrs. McCall—,”

Melissa raised a hand to stop him. “Please, I am not judging you but after everything I’ve been told— while some of it seems crazy for the most part— it strikes me as being dangerous and that’s what I’m concerned about most. Do any of the other parents know about this? Or am I the only one?”

“No, no one else knows.”

“Have you considered telling them?”

“No, it’s not my place. If they wanted to tell their parents the truth then I wouldn’t stand in their way.”

“But?”

“Do you know any of the parents of the other pack members, Mrs. McCall?” Ms. Morrell asked.

“I’ve met Erica’s parents and Jackson’s but not the other boys.”

“Well, I’ve met all of their parents including the late Mr. Lahey. And I wouldn’t be overstating it to say that your relationship with Scott is…” Ms. Morrell paused as though she were searching for the right words. “It’s just not the same as the other pack members have with their parents. You are involved in your son’s life and you accept him for who he is. ”

“Who’s to say their parent’s won’t be as accepting as I am. These kids won’t know until they are open and honest with them.” Melissa countered with a sigh. While she truly believed that any parent would accept their child no matter what she also knew that not every parent would. 

“I’ll talk to them about it and let them decide if they want to tell their parents.” Derek acquiesced. “I know this isn’t easy to accept but please know that even if Scott’s not in the pack that he or you can come to me if you have any questions about anything.”

“Thank you, Derek. I’d appreciate that.”

“And if you can’t reach Derek you can reach me any of these numbers.” Ms. Morrell said as she handed her a card. 

Melissa took the card and slid it into her scrubs. “At the risk of asking an intensely personal question that you are more than welcome to tell me to mine my business on, are you together?”

“Yes,” Ms. Morrell answered succinctly.

“Thought as much.” Melissa said with a smile before a frown marred her face, turning slightly to Derek. “About your uncle Peter, Scott said that he was back and I—,”

“Peter won’t bother you or Scott,” Ms. Morrell said with a hint of steel in her tone. “Derek and I have had a chat with Peter and he knows not to bother you. But, if he does please call us.”

“I will definitely do that. And you’re sure he’s not an Alpha anymore?”

“No, he’s not. And I’ve asked him to leave you alone. In fact, I’ve told the pack to leave Scott alone as well so he can get himself back on track.”

“I just have one more question about Isaac actually. I was a little concerned about his current living situation. I know that his father is died and he helped Scott but I never really got an answer from him. He was very evasive, do you know is everything okay with him?”

“No, but we’re working on that.” Ms. Morrell said sigh as she glanced at Derek. “Just have to get some final details in place.”

“Great. If you need a reference or if he needs a place to stay while you get everything together, Isaac is more than welcome to stay here.”

“That’s very sweet of you to offer.” Ms. Morrell said as she and Derek stood up.

Melissa shrugged. “We have the space and honestly with Stiles running in and out of this house since he was five I’m kind of used to it.” She walked the couple to door and saw them out.

*

Genevieve slid into the Camaro and waited for Derek to slide into the driver’s seat beside her as she put her sunglasses on.

Derek got into his Camaro and started the car. “So how do you think it went?’

“I think she feels a little better about Scott being a werewolf.”

“But?” Derek asked as he pulled out on the road.

“How do you know there’s a but?”

“As you are fond of telling me all the time, _I_ know you.”

Genevieve smiled at him rolling her eyes. “ _But_ , she did have a point about the pack telling their parents the truth. We don’t really know how their parents would react.”

“I said that I would talk to them about their parents and I will.”

“I’m sure you plan to say something but I also know that you aren’t going to endorse it. Talking about it and actually standing behind it are two different things. Mind telling me why?”

When Camaro came to a stop at a light, Derek glanced over at Genevieve. “I know that you think I picked who I did for my pack because they were lonely, friendless or manipulated by me to join. But, the truth is that with the exception of Jackson, who asked for the bite, I gave them all a choice. And even with all the things that have happened—the bad and the good—if they were given the same choice today they’d still take it. Even Jackson, the only one who wouldn’t is Scott.” The light turned green and turned back to road pressing gas to move the car forward.

“What makes you think that?”

“Without the bite and the pack the same thing would still be missing from their lives.”

“Their strength, the powers, what was missing?”

“No, the bond that unites us as a pack having somewhere we belong. Scott’s different from us because he’s always known that he’s not alone. It’s got his mother, Stiles, and even the Sheriff who all see him for what he really is and accepts him no questions asked.”

“Being accepted and belonging are very powerful motivators.” Genevieve added with a nod as she turned her body to watch Derek navigate the road back to the school. “You said us. Are you including yourself in that group?”

“I was,” he said as he eased back into the school parking lot and parked the car in an open space by the field. Genevieve released her seatbelt and leaned over to caress Derek’s jaw directing his gaze from the parking lot to her. He kissed her palm and returning her warm gaze.

“I see you Derek Hale, warts and all. And I’m not running away.”

Derek smiled then and used her hand to pull her closer as he leaned down when someone knock on his window. They jumped apart when the knock sounded again and this time the knocker bent down so that he was eye level with the car window as he pointedly stared at the field. 

“Romeo and Juliet! Get your clothes on and get your asses back in class. You have five minutes or—,”

“I think a little we’re a little old for that.” Genevieve said after Derek lowered the window for her. Coach Finstock glanced inside the car and his gaze jumped from Genevieve to Derek and back to Genevieve again.

“Uh … this is awkward. Ms. Morrell, I thought you were someone else.” Coach Finstock stammered.

“Clearly,” Derek said dryly.

“As you were, then. I’ll just go… somewhere not here.” Coach Finstock said before rose back to his feet and swiftly left the car.

He wasn’t gone a minute before Genevieve and Derek started laughing.

“On that note, I should probably get back. I’ll see you later?”

“Of course.” Genevieve leaned over and brushed a kiss on his cheek before getting out of the car.

*

The next morning Isaac was pulled out of his first period class to report to Genevieve’s office. He didn’t know what it could be about since he completed all his missing assignments the week before. And she hadn’t said anything to him about meeting the night before when he’d seen her. So he was surprised when he arrived in her office to see that she wasn’t alone, Derek sat in the chair across from her.

“Isaac, please come in. Take a seat,” she beckoned him in with a smile and wave of her hand.

He walked in and closed the door behind him before sitting down in the chair beside Derek. “So … am I in trouble or something?”

Derek pinned him with arched brow. “Have you done something that would get you in trouble?”

“No.”

“Then, you have nothing to worry about.”

“Isaac,” Genevieve started and he directed his gaze toward her. “I asked Derek to be here so we could talk about his guardianship of you. Has anyone at Social Services talked to you about becoming an emancipated minor or the Transitional Independence Living Program?”

“No,” he glanced at Derek briefly before continuing. “But, that means that I could live on my own right.”

“Yes.” Genevieve slid a brochure toward him. “And I think that you are a good candidate for the program. In light of your current situation, I thought that it might be something you should consider.”

Isaac took the brochure and sat back as he read it over. He could live on his own and not have to be dependent on Derek or anyone else. He could get his own apartment. “Do you want me to do this?” He asked directing his question to Derek who’d been silent so far.

“It’s not about what I want, Isaac. I think you should make the decision on what’s best for you.” 

Per usual with Derek, it was a vague non-answer. He had no idea what his Alpha was truly thinking.

“You don’t have to make any decisions today. This meeting is merely to put your options on that table. Whatever you decide, we’ll work through it together.”

Isaac nodded and placed the brochure back on Genevieve’s desk. “You mentioned options? What are my other options, do I go into foster care it I don’t do this?”

“Of course not,” Derek scoffed.

“You can remain with Derek in current situation or Mrs. McCall has expressed an interest in becoming a foster parent and taking you in until we can work out a more permanent situation.”

Isaac brows rose in surprise. “Are you serious?” He’d only spent a little time with Mrs. McCall and he couldn’t understand why she would want him.

“Yes,” Genevieve replied with a soft smile. “Like I said before, you have options that we can explore.”

“Can I think about it?”

“Of course and take your time. No decisions have to be made today.”

“Okay.” Isaac said then rose to leave and return to class.

xXx

At lunch, he told his packmates of the decision that he had to make.

“So what are you planning to do?” Erica asked munching on apple as she leaned against Boyd with her legs propped up on the bench seats of the lunch table barring anyone from sitting beside her.

“I don’t know.” Isaac said as he plucked at the remains of his lunch. “If I became an emancipated, there is no way that I could afford rent and utilities on my salary so I’d have to get another job.”

“What about staying with McCall? I’ve never met his mom but she seems like she’d be nice.” Boyd asked.

Isaac shrugged. “She is nice and everything. But, I don’t want to be a burden.”

“She offered, Isaac. If she didn’t want you there she wouldn’t have offered. But, if you’re so concerned why don’t you just stay with Derek?” Erica asked as she placed the apple core on her lunch tray and stole a chip from Boyd’s tray. “It might not be ideal but it’s been than trying to do everything by yourself.

“She’s right, man. Derek’s probably the best option. But, if you don’t want to stay with him I can ask my parents if you could come stay with us.” Boyd offered solemnly taking Isaac by surprise.

“You’d do that for me?”

Boyd shrugged. “We’re pack. We gotta stick together.” 

“I’d offer too. But, my parents are still trying to get used to the new me. And asking to move boy in the house after I just got home from running off with Boyd would be a little much. Heck, if it wasn’t for Genevieve I’d been grounded for life. And I’m barely off restriction as it is.”

“It’s cool. I appreciate the offers though.”

“Like Boyd said we’re pack.” Erica reached over and snatched the apple off of Isaac’s tray taking a bite out of it. “That sounds like you’ve already made up your mind.”

“I think I’ll just stay with Derek.” It had been on his mind all morning and talking every out with Erica and Boyd had really put it into perspective for him. At the end of the day there was only one choice, his best choice to stay with his Alpha and his pack.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One of the things that always bugged me about Season Two and frankly the first half of Season 3 was the vagueness regarding Isaac’s living situation and the lack of conversation between Derek and Melissa. A conversation which clearly happened since she had his cell phone number in the Season 3 premiere. So this is my fix, it’s somewhat within in the canon but not completely following. I initially envisioned this story really being two parts with the second part to incorporating aspects the Alpha Pack and Darach storylines. All this is to say that there will be a sequel and I have about 90% of the outline for the story complete and I’ve started writing but I’d like to be further along before I start posting so I’m not sure yet when it will be ready.
> 
> So thoughts, questions, comments? I’ve love to hear what you think!


	17. Chapter Fifteen

**Chapter Fifteen**

_Two Weeks Later …_

Genevieve had received a text message from Derek asking her to come meet him. Since it was the beginning of the finals period she left work a little early for lunch and drove to the address he’d sent to her. She parked her car outside of the building she’d been directed to, as she got out of her car she place her car keys into to pocket of her black slacks. 

She pushed her sunglasses up on top of her head as she peered up at the building. Though it wasn’t a tall building, there were about five stories with large windows that faced the main drag of street. It was the located in downtown Beacon Hills not that far from the high school or the main part of town but nicely situated in the middle. Derek had told her nothing, so she honestly, had no idea why he wanted to her meet him there. She continued on to what she assumed was the main entrance to the building, a gray door with a buzzer and keypad beside it. 

Genevieve pressed the buzzer and felt a hand at the small of her back.

“You’re early.” Derek said as he came up behind her, running his hand over the small of her back while he pressed a code into the keypad. She heard a lock click and he abandoned her for a moment to pull the door open before returning replace the hand at her back to usher her in.

“It’s finals time, I didn’t have any appointments this afternoon so I figured why not take off for an early lunch.” She stepped into the building and into darkness once the door shut behind her. She felt rather than saw Derek reach for her hand as they begin to walk down a darkened hallway. “Derek, what is this place?”

“You’ll see,” was all he said as they turned one corner and then another until they were into front of another door that Derek pulled open with one hand. It was a stairwell. 

“Next time warn me to wear flats.” Genevieve said with a sigh as she allowed him to lead her up three flights of stairs before finally leaving the stairwell and entering a hallway with one metal door.

“Sorry the elevator’s not working just yet.” He pushed open the door and gestured for her to enter the space. 

Genevieve walked through the door and was immediately taken by surprise by what she saw. It was a loft space complete with hardwood floor and large bay windows marking the edge of the space in front of her. There was a small enclosed room with a spiral staircase a few feet away that she presumed led to a second level. She turned to the left and saw a kitchen with stainless steel appliances; dark cherry wood cabinetry and a dark brown marble island. 

“What do you think?” Derek asked. “I was thinking about tearing down this wall to expand the space.”

Genevieve turned and walked to the other side of the room where Derek stood by the wall. “What’s on the other side of the wall?”

“A brick wall,” Derek shrugged. “I think they used the other room for storage mostly.”

“Hum, I guess you’ll need to have one hell of a lease.” 

“There’s no lease. I own the building.”

“You _own_ the building?” Genevieve repeated incredulously.

“I bought it. More for the space to hold my cars but this loft space was partially complete. And you said that I needed to get a more permanent residence for my guardianship of Isaac.”

“Yeah, but I was thinking more along the lines of a two bedroom apartment. Not a building. Derek, you don’t have a job – are you sure you can afford this place— the building?” Genevieve asked gesturing at the space around them. 

“How do you afford to live in your house with only 1 income? I know what a public school teacher makes and I can’t imagine that a guidance counselor makes that much more?”

“Is this some sort I’ll tell show mine if you show me yours bargain?” Derek’s sole response was a minute nod of his head. “Fine, I’ll play. I have an inheritance, a small trust that my great-grandmother set-up for me. I’m not wealthy by any stretch of the imagination but I’m comfortable. If I hadn’t used a portion of it as a down payment on the house, which was on foreclosure when I bought it technically, if I was very careful I could have lived off it for a few years.”

“It’s the same for me. Laura and I never really spent any of the money we were left except for our cars. And we made money with some investments over the years but most of it just sits in the bank. This building was on the market for a couple years so I got it at a steal really.”

“So does this renewed interest in putting down roots extend toward you getting a job?” Genevieve asked she pushed away from the wall to get a better look at the kitchen with Derek following behind her.

“I’ve considered it but I frankly prefer working on my own. In fact, I was thinking of converting the other floors into loft apartments for rent. The realtor I spoke to said that if I get the spaces completely renovated and up to code by the fall I could be full before the end of the year.”

Genevieve ran her hand over the smooth granite top of island. “You’ve given this a lot of thought.” She spun around leaning back up against the island to gaze around the neat kitchen. She examined the gleaming chrome fixtures and stainless steel appliances around the room. It was obvious that he had spent a lot of time getting this loft space ready before showing it to her. “Are you sure that this is what you want? Or are you doing this because it’s what you think I want?”

“Honestly? Probably a little bit of both but mostly because I want to.”

“Then, I want whatever you want. I just hope you know what you’re getting yourself into.” 

Derek nodded agreement as he surveyed the loft space around them as though he was accessing all of the work that he would have to do, the decisions that he would have to make before finally meeting her warm brown eyes. “I think I do.”

*

_Four weeks later …_

It was moving day for Derek and Isaac. The loft apartment had finally been finished to all of Derek’s specifications. His loft spanned the top two floors of the building. The second level was a dedicated pack space with a suite of five bedrooms and a shared living room that was treated as a pack den with a television, DVR, and video games along with a space reserved for training that could be turned into a triage space if needed equipped with all the necessary first aid tools. Each pack member had a room if they ever needed a place to stay. 

The lower level besides holding the kitchen, a formal dining space, and small living room was his domain. By taking out the extra wall he was able to create two rooms. One he used as an office with a desk, a computer and the books he’d managed to salvage from his house. The second room was his bedroom complete with a luxurious en suite bathroom. 

He ensured that each room had access to the fire escape as a failsafe or had other ways to get of the building undetected in the event of an emergency. He’d even gone the extra mile of having sensors and an elaborate security system for which he installed himself that would alert him to presence of unwanted visitors in the building.

Between buying the building and the added costs of the renovations he’d made to it, he’d expended a couple hundred thousand on everything. He made sure to include Genevieve and get her opinion on his plans to ensure that it met her needs as well. He didn’t tell her that part of the reason he’d spent so much money was make the loft presentable enough so that he could convince her to move in with him. He just didn’t know how to bring it up to her. He even allowed her to help him furniture shop because if left to him the loft would literally have only the essentials for himself and Isaac. 

At her suggestion, he made sure to include Isaac and gave the teen the option of taking some of his furniture from his house to have it moved into the loft. Isaac had decided that he didn’t want to keep his house so instead of getting rid of it like Isaac wanted, Genevieve recommended that he clear it out and put the property up for rental. So in between the renovations for the loft he and the pack helped Isaac sort and save the few items that he wanted from the house and place the rest in storage. 

The week before, he’d enlisted the pack to paint the loft walls from a dull white to a cream. It still surprised him to no end that the with the exception of Jackson, who the pack members still only tolerated, had shown up bright early Saturday morning with Genevieve to paint. It took half the day to get all the walls painted but when finished it was perfect.

Now, as he stood watching the last bit of furniture moved into his loft, he thanked the movers and shut the door behind them. He went to find Genevieve unloading his dishwasher. She had arrived a few hours before with several boxes containing dishes, silverware, pots and pans, bedding, towel sets and cleaning supplies. While, he had the pack helping put together shelves, bed frames, and moving furniture around she had stocked all the bathrooms, linen closets, and made up all the beds. When she finished that she’d given the pack money and asked them to get food while she took care of the kitchen. 

He walked into the kitchen to sit down on a stool by the island watching as she placed the last pot in the cabinet. “You didn’t have to do that or any of the other stuff you’ve done today.”

Genevieve glanced up at him with a bemused smile. “I know but I wanted to. Besides, it’s not like you let me help move anything.” She placed a dish towel on the oven door and moved to stand between his legs as she leaned into him as she wrapped her arms around his neck. “Are we alone?”

Instead of answering Derek just slid hands around her waist thumbing at the edge of her tank top. Her breath hitched as he felt an undercurrent of want, bleed into the bond. Her heartbeat began to speed up, her eyes were hot on his pupils dark and widening as he slid one his hand under her top placing on her back as he pulled her closer. He used the other to nudge her chin up. She hesitantly bit her lip as she unconsciously leaned forward into him and his lips met hers.

“The first meeting of Alpha Cockblock Society in effect. We’re ba-ck!” Erica called out when the loft door slammed open as the betas filed in with laughter as they carried several takeout bags. 

With a quite sigh, Derek pulled away, placing a kiss on Genevieve’s forehead as he stood up.

Genevieve raised a brow and dropped her arms from around his neck as she pushed away from him. “Let’s go eat.” He allowed her to lead him into the dining room.

*

Genevieve walked into the animal clinic to see Scott at the desk checking a dog out.

“Hello Scott. Is Alan in?”

“Yes, he’s in his office. You can go on back to talk to him.”

Genevieve smiled and walked around the entry way to go toward Deaton’s office. He was seated behind the desk when she arrived at the doorway. She knocked on the door to get his attention before stepping over the threshold. “Alan, do you have a spare moment?”

Deaton glanced up with a nod. “Yes, of course. Please have a seat.”

Genevieve sat down in the chair across from him and patiently waited for him to complete his paperwork and give her his full attention.

“So what do I owe to the honor of this visit? You’re last visit here wasn’t exactly a favorable one.”

“No, it wasn’t, but I’m glad we’ve been able to get past that. I wanted to know if you’d heard anything more about the Alpha pack.”

“No more than what we spoke of previously. Have you contacted your mother? No doubt Penny will have access to more information than either of us will.”

Genevieve sighed. “I did actually, but she hasn’t learned anything new. She was only able to tell me that Deucalion’s trajectory showed that he is headed west— here. It’s not his arrival that concerns me so much as what he wants with Derek.”

“What did Derek say?”

“He’s not aware of anything that might draw the Alpha pack or Deucalion here.”

“I wish I had more to tell you, but I haven’t been contacted.”

“That is also not surprising.”

“Why do you say that?” Deaton asked with a raised brow in question.

“I told you that I was looking to acquire a new emissary for Derek. I contacted Alastair to see if Braeden was available. He says that he hasn’t seen or heard from her in months.”

“Is she missing?”

“They don’t know. According to Alastair, she left the pack because she was offered a position that she couldn’t decline.”

“ _Couldn’t_? Does he believe there was coercion involved? Could she have been taken by force?”

“No, that’s just it. Alastair said that she left of her own accord. He thought she was making her way to me. But, I haven’t heard from her in while.”

Deaton frowned. “That is unlike her. She always checks in with you.”

“I know, if I hadn’t been so distracted by everything going on here, I probably would have realized it sooner. But, I keep thinking about it, it seems like too much of a coincidence that Braeden disappears just when the Hales are contacted by the Alphas.”

“You think she’s with them?”

“I think that Braeden does what she thinks is right. It would also explain why no one has heard a word from her in months.” She stood pacing as she thought through everything. “The last time I was at the compound Braeden was mastering how to focus her sight, narrow down the vision to people. That was a year and a half ago. Just think how powerful she would be now and if there’s one thing I know, power attracts power. Deucalion would do anything to have her as his emissary especially with her gift of foresight.”

“You know before Laura died, she came to see me. She asked me to bring you here to settle the bond with Derek. She said that she’d been contacted by the Alpha Pack and that they wanted Derek.”

“Why? Derek would have been a beta then. What would be the appeal to having a beta in a pack of Alphas?”

“You said it yourself, power attracts power.”

“There has to be more to it than that. Something that we can’t see and that’s why they have Braeden, her visions show outcomes but the details— the how— they’re never clear.”

“If you’re right and she’s with them. Then, there’s a possibility that they know about you and your bond.”

“And if they do that means they’re watching, waiting for the right moment to strike when we least expect it.” She stopped pacing. “We have to be ready when they come.”

“Are you sure you’re ready for the final step? Because once you take it, there is no turning back.”

“I’m sure,” she answered with a certainty that she hadn’t realized was there. 

Deaton nodded. “If there is anything I can do, let me know.”

“I will. Thank you.” Genevieve said with a final nod as she turned and left the office.

xXx

The conversation with Deaton stayed with Genevieve for days. It was the first time she admitted to herself that she was ready to take that final step with Derek. The more she thought about it, the more certain she became that it was the right choice for her. But, Derek never mentioned it and that gave her some pause. He had been so set on re-igniting the bond but after it happened there was no mention of the final step that would make it permanent. It was as if Derek completely forgot about it which made her anxious as she contemplated what it meant.

Thus, the unfortunate result was the re-occurrence of impromptu silences and awkwardness around Derek whenever they were alone. 

“You’re quiet.” Derek said after dinner at her place one night as he sat across observing her. “Is something wrong?”

“No,” Genevieve quietly denied as she placed her cup on the table deliberately not meeting his eyes. 

“Are you sure?” 

“No, I’m not.” Derek nudged her chin so that she could meet his eyes as he raised a brow in question. “I’m just…thinking.” She finally admitted.

“Oh, I gathered that. I can usually account for you to at least take part in half of a conversation. But you’ve been a bit spaced out lately.” He said with a slight smile. “So what is it?”

“I’ve been ... confused?”

“You’ve been confused?” He encouraged. 

“Yes.”

“About what?”

“When are we going to seal the bond?” She finally just blurted out.

Derek was clearly taken back as his face went blank in surprise. 

“I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to say it like that. But, I’m curious. You pushed for the bond to be re-ignited, it was and then … nothing. I know things were crazy for while but it’s been calm for weeks and you never mention it. So I’m confused.”

When Derek didn’t respond immediately, Genevieve rose to intending to take the last remaining dishes to the kitchen but he grabbed her arm rising to his full six foot frame.

“Wait,” he said as he used his hold on her arm to turn her back to face him. “Do you remember what I told Melissa about the bite?”

“You told her that the bite is gift.”

“Right, the betas choose to take the bite it was a gift for them. But, it’s not a gift for you.”

“Why not?” She asked unsure of what he meant.

“I activated the bond because it was my choice and I wanted you to be my mate. And the bite is an acknowledgment of the bond and the pack as yours. The pack is yours and I am yours. You are my mate, Genevieve Morrell and everything that I am is yours. So, it’s your move now, and I’m not going to take that away from you.” He shifted closer pulling her into the heat of his arms, his hand firmly placed on the small of her back. He leaned down until his lips gently brushed her ear. “And my mate doesn’t ask me for what is rightfully hers. She demands it! So when you’re ready, take what is yours.”

For a moment, all she did was just breathe in his scent and knew he did the same as his nose grazed the shell of her ear. She took his words, so quietly spoken, and let the strength of them resonate through her.

Genevieve inclined her head to the side with a small nod. “I’m not there yet.”

“I know, but you will be.” Derek said gently as he released her rubbing her shoulders and passing the discarded plates to her before leaning back on the table, just as calmly. “Until then I’ll be waiting.”

Though he was standing there still as can be Genevieve could almost see the animal within prowling to the forefront in the glimmer of his eyes and it caused a shiver of anticipation down her spine. The wait would not be too much longer. 

She grabbed the dishes and headed into the kitchen.

xXx

It had been three weeks since Genevieve had posed her question to Derek about the final step in sealing the bond. His answer, although not what she had expected had certainly cleared things up for her. 

For the first day or two, it weighed on her mind constantly as she looked for signs from Derek that he thought she was ready. But, it was for naught as he never addressed the bond again. By the fourth day, she stopped looking for signs and everything went back to normal. 

When she realized that she was ready to seal the bond, she didn’t wake up that morning and just decide she was ready. Nor did the idea suddenly pop into her head that today would be the day. No, it happened when she didn’t expect it. It was just a regular day like any other. 

Genevieve hadn’t seen Derek all day, they’d spoken on the phone briefly that afternoon when she relied a message from Isaac, who’d left his cell phone at the loft that he was going to spend the night at Scott’s to study for a test in the chemistry class that were retaking for the summer. She wasn’t supposed to see him that night in fact, she and Jacs had arranged to have a much needed girls night agreeing meet for drinks and dinner. 

As she was putting the finishing touches on her outfit for the night sliding into a pair of dark wash jeans with a black silk camisole beneath a sleeveless purple chiffon blouse. Carrying her black leather Manolo Blahnik booties in one hand and a small black clutch purse in the other hand she walked downstairs to her living room. She was in the process of grabbing a light jacket out of her closet when first crack of thunder hit and the sky rumbled. 

The forecast for the night was supposed to be clear if a little breezy but as she heard the sky rumbling again, she slipped on and zipped up her booties before moving to open her front door to see if it had began to rain. The moment she glanced at the sky, she saw the clouds rushing together, swirling as though in a dance. Lightening struck somewhere in the distance causing the sky to light up as clouds moved again revealing the eerie glow of a half moon. 

Everything faded into the background as the glow of the moon struck her. The light moved over her, leaving a feeling of warmth and making her yearn for the part of her that could feel the pull of moon. Thunder rumbled again breaking her trance with moon and instantly setting her mind anew with a need to see Derek to cement the bond. 

Within minutes she locked up her house was in her car headed to the loft. As she drove the short distance, she called Jacs and cancelled their outing. By the time she parked her car and ran into the building using the security code that Derek had given her, she was slightly damp. Thankfully, she didn’t have to trek all the way up to the loft using the stairs this time and was able to take the elevator which opened up into the foyer of Derek’s loft.

Genevieve stepped out of the elevator into the partially darken loft. There was only one lamp lit in the corner of the living room that cast the room with a warm glow. Derek, who was dressed in his standard uniform of a wife beater and jeans, stood by the window looking out storm raged on, rain hitting the windowpane in sheets as thunder rolled and lightening lit up the sky. “Derek,” she called quietly even though she knew that he had felt her the moment she entered the building.

“I thought you were having a girl’s night.” 

“I was,” she replied as she stripped off her jacket dropping it on the sofa as she walked over to Derek. “But, I decided that there was something more important that I wanted to do.”

Derek just nodded his head but had yet to turn to her in greeting.

“ Derek, look at me.”

Derek kept his attention on the window until Genevieve could see her own reflection window as she came up behind him. “Six years ago, I initiated the bond calling on the old gods to sanctify our union, to make it strong enough to survive time and distance, so strong that only in death would it end.” She ran her hand up his back to grab his shoulder, with a gentle tug to urge him to around to face her. He allowed her to pull him around, the height of her booties giving her the slight advantage of being face to face with him. 

Brown eyes stared into the warm green as she waited for him to say something, anything. When he didn’t she began unbuttoning her purple chiffon blouse. Once unbuttoned she let the blouse fall to her feet leaving her in the black jeans, black booties, and the silk black camisole. “Our bond is sacred and strong, bound by the most pure magic, my blood and yours. You choose to activate the bond, and now it’s my choice to seal it.”

Genevieve could feel her heart beating as fast as a drum, she was sure that Derek could hear it. For several minutes, he said nothing to her, simply staring at her as though he was scanning her face for any sign that she wasn’t ready. But, there wasn’t any as she was resolute in her decision.

Derek slid a hand onto her back to propel her body in his allowing the heat from his body to seep into her warming her up. He pressed a kiss on her temple, her eyebrows, her nose and finally her mouth. She responded in opening her mouth under the gentle pressure of his lips kissing him passionately. He tipped up her chin, angling her head just so as his tongue swept into her mouth tangling with hers.

She leaned up, pressing her body into his as her hands tangled in the hair at his nape. He pulled back releasing her mouth when the need for air became paramount. Staring into her eyes, he easily read the heat and lust in her gaze as he reached for her hand. Taking her hand in his, he led her down the hallway to his bedroom.

Once inside the room, Derek took her mouth again as he pushed back against the door. She moaned as Derek pulled away to trail kisses down her neck. He scraped his teeth across her pulse point before settling to nuzzle into the small area where her shoulders and neck met.

Genevieve slid her hands into his hair to guide his head down as she angled her head to the side. “Do it, Derek,” she said softly. His head popped up as his hands slid down to the small of her back, green eyes met brown. “Bite me,” she ordered softly and watched as his visage changed before her eyes. Green eyes bled red, canine teeth elongating as he leaned down, pausing briefly before his teeth pierced her neck. When he pulled away, blood dripping from his mouth she attacked him.

*

Isaac returned to the loft the next morning with Boyd and Erica en tow. As part of the plans to improve his grades, he and Scott had enrolled in a Chemistry class for the summer. It was ironic that he had to bust his butt and re-enroll in the class, yet he had steadfastly attended the class while his other two pack mates had disappeared for two weeks and their grades hadn’t suffered as much from the loss. 

He’d met up with his packmates after the exam for a late breakfast or early lunch. They headed directly to kitchen pulling out the fixings for breakfast.

“How was the exam?” Erica asked from her perch on the island stool beside Boyd who was diligently chopping tomatoes.

“I don’t know, it was an exam,” Isaac replied with a shrug as dug around in the refrigerator for the bowl of shredded gruyere cheese. He took the bowl out and returned to the island to start mixing the eggs for the omelets. 

“Well, duh you dodo! But, do you think you passed?” Erica asked as she swiped a tomato from Boyd chopping block.

“Stop picking on Isaac.” Boyd warned with a playful glare.

“I can’t help it. You know how I get when I’m hungry.” Erica whined grinning playfully as she stole another tomato off the block before directing her attention to Isaac again. “You never answered me, so did you pass or what?”

“Why do you want to know?” Isaac asked exasperated.

“Because, I need a partner for Physics next semester since smarty pants over there,” she gestured toward Boyd. “Is taking AP Biology.”

“Dude, you’re taking AP Bio? You didn’t tell me that.” Isaac replied with a surprised glance a Boyd.

Boyd shrugged as he began chopping an onion, when he realized that both his packmates were staring at him expectantly. “What? I took Physics last year and Genevieve thought an AP course would look good on my transcript. Besides, I actually like science.”

“See, what I mean.” Erica said as she slid off the stool. “If you’re not there, I’ll be forced to partner with Stilinski or McCall and considering that Harrison will probably be teaching it, I’d rather work with someone that won’t automatically set me up for failure.”

“You do realize that Harrison doesn’t exactly like me. Why do you think I’m re-taking Chemistry?”

“Well, he may not like you but he _hates_ Scott and Stiles so I’ll take my chances with you.” Erica said as she reached over and plucked some cheese out of the bowl only to have her hand smacked my Isaac. “Hey.”

“Would you stop picking at the food! Why don’t you do something productive and see if Derek wants an omelet?” Isaac suggested as he pulled the bowl of cheese and all the other dishes with the chopped veggies out of her reach.

“Fine,” Erica said as she stomped out of the kitchen mumbling under her breath. 

“How did we end up doing all the prep work and cooking when this was _her_ idea?” Isaac asked Boyd when she left the room. 

“You know Erica doesn’t like to cook.”

“It’s more like she doesn’t want to cook which I don’t get because her parents are really good cooks.” Isaac said as he added pepper to the egg mixture. In an effort to get to know her new friends better the Reyes’ had invited the pack over for dinner a few weeks ago. Much to everyone’s surprise, Derek had even attended with Genevieve and was seemingly the perfect guest. He was polite and very charming even bringing Mrs. Reyes a pretty bouquet of flowers. The Reyes’ had been very impressed with Derek and his willingness to take in Isaac. The dinner had helped to settle the Reyes’ concerns with Erica spending so much time with the boys. 

“True.” Boyd replied solemnly as Erica returned with her eyes widen and cheeks slightly flushed. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

“We have to go. Now.”

“What? Why? What did Derek say?”

“Genevieve is here.” Erica remarked as though that explained everything.

“Does she want an omelet, too?” Isaac asked confused not at all surprised that Genevieve had come by so early. She would often come by early in the morning and have breakfast with them or pull Derek out of bed early to run some errand. 

“No, she doesn’t. We just need to go. Now,” Erica said through clenched teeth as she moved around the kitchen and began putting the chopped vegetables in containers. Boyd watched her for a couple seconds and then shrugged taking the egg mixture from Isaac and pouring it into a bowl and placing the container in the refrigerator.

When they were done, Erica grabbed his hand and Boyd’s pulling them out of the kitchen and out of the loft. “Let’s go I’ll pay for breakfast.”

“Wait, why are we leaving?” Isaac asked they crossed the threshold of the loft and Erica dropped their hands to head toward the staircase. 

“You know how Derek has been teaching us how to focus and isolate scents?”

“Yeah.”

Erica cleared her throat. “Well, Genevieve is with Derek.”

Boyd’s brows rose in surprise. 

“So what? Genevieve is usually with Derek.” Isaac replied to which made Boyd stop and stare.

“No, you don’t understand. Genevieve is _with_ Derek.” 

“Yeah, I heard you the first time.”

“Seriously?” Erica swore glancing at him and then Boyd who shook his head.

“Be gentle,” Boyd sighed as he took in front of them heading down the stairs.

“Okay, follow along with me, Isaac.” She gesture wildly with her hands. “Genevieve is with Derek but I didn’t see them together. Her jacket and blouse were on the floor in the living room.” When Isaac opened his mouth to protest, she slapped her over it. “Think about it. It’s Thursday mid-morning and her blouse was on the living room floor.” She paused to let those details sink in, she knew when he finally got it when he jerked away eyes widen in horror. Thank goodness she had gotten over her crush on Derek ages ago. She thought of him now as more of an older brother. An older brother that she quietly would have preferred to never know had sex.

“Oh god,” he groaned stepping back shaking his head.

“I know, aren’t you glad we got out when we did? Can you imagine how awkward that would have been?”

“Yeah, it’s not just that. Well, it is but Scott told me that Genevieve was the one that suggested the study session. She even talked to Mrs. McCall to make sure it was okay that I stayed over.”

Erica turned and headed down the hallway to the staircase. “Well, that’s probably because she planned to have loud, dirty sex and didn’t want you hear.” She called out with a laugh before heading down the stairs.

Isaac groaned again following her. “Thanks so much for that mental image. I am never going to be able to look anyone in the face again.”

Unbeknownst to the teens who disappeared down the stairs, Peter came out from the other end of the hallway. “Well, that certainly changes things.” He added before walking down the hallway to stairs.

*

Genevieve slowly awoke, her eyes blinking blearily as she turned to move out of the sunlight beaming down on her head. As she took in her surroundings and her senses came alive she realized that she wasn’t in her bedroom. She was in Derek’s bedroom, in his bed naked. She was naked and in bed with Derek.

She slowly sat up, clutching the sheet to chest as she ran her hands through her messy, tangled hair. She gingerly touched the area where Derek had bit her and was surprised at what she felt. It didn’t feel like a bite to her, she frowned. She slid out the bed glancing around until she spotted Derek’s shirt on the floor and plucked it up pulling it over her head. She walked into the bathroom flipping on the light. She turned to her side, pulling her hair to the side she looked at the bite mark. “Shit,” she swore surprised at what she saw.

“What’s wrong?” Derek asked as he appeared behind her.

“Look at the bite,” Genevieve said as she turned and angled her body so he could see it. He ran his finger over the skin on her neck where he had bitten her. It was nearly healed, leaving the only faint marks. 

“You’re healing.”

“Yes, I gathered that. But, how? Bites on bonded mates aren’t supposed to heal.” Genevieve said as she looked up at Derek whose eyes widen in surprise.

“Your eyes,” he said as quietly.

“What?”

“Look at your eyes, Genevieve.” He turned her back to face the mirror and waited for her to look at her reflection.

Genevieve stared at her reflection in mirror. She was about to ask Derek what was wrong when she saw it. She leaned closer to the mirror and widening her eyes in the mirror. Her eye color had changed. Her eyes were normally a warm brown, just a solid brown. Yet, the eyes that stared back at her in the mirror were flecked with yellow. “What the hell is happening to me?”

“You’re transitioning.”

“Into what?” 

“An Alpha.”


	18. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

Peter had finally returned to his apartment after running an errand. His intention had been to reveal to Derek that there was a mark left at the Hale homestead early that morning. The mark of course, left by the Alpha Pack, was a warning of their arrival. But, instead he had learned that Derek and the Druid had finally sealed their bond. So his plans had changed.

“Did you do it?” Asked the dissembled voice of the figure hidden in the shadows of his apartment.

He palmed his keys searching the room to find figure shrouded in darkness from across the room. 

“Yes, but I don’t understand why? I thought you wanted the Alpha Pack to come, we lured them back here for Derek. And now that we know they’re coming you want to hide from them?”

“We are not hiding, Peter. We are preparing, they believe that they are coming here to face an untrained pack of teenagers with an Alpha who acts without thinking. Derek has a complete pack with an emissary and bonded mate at his side. That means he has power and is no longer easy pickings. We will not strike; we will wait until the time is right. Let Deucalion and his pack wreak a little havoc.”

“I disagree. We should strike when they least expect it.”

“And I did not ask for your opinion,” the light flicked on revealing the figure of the dissembled voice covered with a hooded cape. “Obviously, you still haven’t learned, slow and steady wins the race, Peter. The longer we remain hidden in the darkness the better off I’ll be.” The figure seemed to float across the floor as it headed to the door.

“So I’m supposed to do nothing while they come and take over again! You promised I would have my vengeance when I saved you.” Peter snarled and charged toward to figure only to be stopped when the figure held a hand in the air. He was lifted off his feet frozen in stasis and moved across the room until he was held above the hooded figured. 

“And without my help you would have died true death in a fire. But, I saved you Peter. I saved you from perdition. Make no mistake; we want the same thing. Deucalion, Kali and the others will burn for the harm they’ve caused. But, we must stay committed to the path we have taken.” The figured slowly lowered her hand and placed Peter back on his feet. “The Morrells are an old family, powerful Druids and conduits to the old ways. The cemented bond with Derek changes _everything_. It will change the conflux of events not just for us but for the Alphas.”

“Your powers have grown.” 

“Yes, they have. They grow stronger everyday that is why we must wait.”

Peter cracked his neck and agreed with barely concealed anger. “Fine, what do you want me to do?”

“Nothing, just wait and watch Derek and his pack. Harrison has finally come through for me and while Derek and his pack are busy fighting off Deucalion we can begin our work to build my power until the lunar eclipse.”

“What if they bring her?”

“Cora?”

“Yes.”

“Your niece has no memory of the night of the fire. She won’t remember anything.” She lifted the hood back up and turned moved back into the shadows of his apartment. “Stay out of trouble, Peter.”

“Wait! You said Harrison came through? How? You can’t go to the school like that.”

The figure moved to him then until it was standing before him, as the hood to the cape lowered revealing the visage of a beautiful young woman. 

“Your scars, they’re gone?”

The young woman shook her head. “Hidden. I can pass now, can’t I?”

“Yes,” Peter remarked softly raising his hand to touch her face as but stopping himself and moving away. “What will they call you?”

“Ms. Blake. Jennifer Blake.” The young woman pulled the hood back on her head, slipped back into the shadows and disappeared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all I would like to thank everyone who took the time to read, reviewed, an gave kudos to this story. Frankly, this is a very, very rare pairing in this fandom so I honestly didn't expect to get any reviews. So I really do appreciate each and every review that I received. 
> 
> To that end, I deliberately left this story open-ended because I plan on continuing it incorporating some aspects of Season Three. The sequel will be called Blood Moon Arising, but I not sure when I plan on posting most likely will be after 3B has finished.

**Author's Note:**

> Title comes from song, "We Must Be Killers," by Mikky Ekko.


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